Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
National Museum of Scotland
Opened in 1998, this impressive museum
housed in an effective, modern, sandstone building not far from the Royal Mile fol-
lows the story of Scotland with exhibits on archaeology, technology, science, the
decorative arts, royalty, and geology. Hundreds of millions of years of Scottish history
are distilled in this collection of some 12,000 items, which range from 2.9-billion-
year-old rocks found on the island of South Uist to a cute Hillman Imp, one of the
last 500 automobiles manufactured in Scotland. One gallery is devoted to Scotland's
centuries as an independent nation. Another gallery, devoted to industry and empire
from 1707 to 1914, includes exhibits on shipbuilding, whisky distilling, and the
railways. The roof garden has excellent views, the
Tower Restaurant
(
&
0131/225-
3003
) offers superb lunches and fine dinners, and the adjacent
Royal Museum
(whose 3-year upgrade ends sometime in 2011) includes a well-preserved and airy
Victorian-era Main Hall and some 36 more galleries.
Chambers St.
&
0131/247-4422.
www.nms.ac.uk. Free admission. Daily 10am-5pm. Bus: 2, 7, 23, 31,
35, 41, or 42.
Scott Monument
Resembling a church spire taken from a Continental European
cathedral, the Gothic-inspired Scott Monument is one of Edinburgh's most recogniz-
able landmarks. Not everyone appreciated the monument when first erected a few
years after Scott's death in 1832, but it is now difficult to imagine the city's Princes
Street Gardens without it. In the center of the 60m-tall (200-ft.) spire is a large seated
statue of Sir Walter Scott and his dog, Maida. You can climb 287 steps to the top for
a worthwhile view: Look east and you can clearly see the
Burns Monument,
dedi-
cated to Robert Burns and designed by Thomas Hamilton in 1830, along Regent Road.
East Princes St. Gardens, near Waverley Station.
&
0131/529-4068.
Admission £3. Apr-Sept Mon-Sun
10am-7pm; Oct-Mar Mon-Sat 9am-4pm, Sun 10am-4pm. Bus: 3, 10, 12, 17, 25, 29, 33, 41, or 45.
Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art
Scotland's national collection of
20th-century art occupies a gallery converted from an 1828 school set on 4.8 hect-
ares (12 acres) of grounds, about a 20-minute walk from the Haymarket train sta-
tion. The collection is international in scope and quality, despite its modest size,
with works ranging from Matisse, Braque, Miró, and Picasso to Balthus, Lichten-
stein, and Hockney. The grounds in
front of the museum have been dra-
matically landscaped with a swirl of
grassy terraces and a pond: a piece of
art itself called “Landform” by Balti-
more-born Charles Jencks.
75 Belford Rd.
&
0131/624-6200.
www.
nationalgalleries.org. Free admission, except
for some temporary exhibits. Daily 10am-5pm.
Closed Dec 25-26. Bus: 13 or National Galleries
shuttle.
Scottish National Portrait Gallery
Housed in a red-stone, Victorian, neo-
Gothic pile designed by Robert Rowand Anderson at the east end of Queen Street,
this is the first purpose-built portrait gallery in the world. Until late 2011, it is closed
for its first major refurbishment. Meanwhile, you can follow its progress on the
museum's blog.
8
National Gallery Bus
If you plan to visit the various branches
of the Scottish National Gallery, from
the Dean to the Portrait, a good way to
get around is by using the free shuttle
bus service that stops at them all.
