The Museum of Edinburgh

The next place of interest I visited was called the Museum of Edinburgh. I enjoyed it but it was certainly nothing special. The walk to it took me to some new and interesting places however, with some beautiful old buildings.

Tolbooth Tavern

An interesting sign written high above my head

Within the museum there was a small section on Bobby the dog, included this sketch done not long before he died.

They also had his drinking bowl, his bell and his dog collar on display. 

The rest of the museum held a collection of oddities and objects of interest, for example the right-hand picture depicts a sword that has an inscribed handle claiming it was used by Oliver Cromwell in the 1600s. However considering the sword itself dates from around 1700 this is pretty unlikely and was probably put there to increase its value. The picture on the left is the inscription on one of the graves in the churchyard I went and visited, although in the original the words were almost worn away.

This is the National Covenant, of which copies were made and sent to every burgh and parish in Scotland to be signed. This one one was signed in the south Kirk of Edinburgh in March 1638, making it one of the earliest surviving copies. It is made of parchment (cured animal skins by soaking them in lime, scraping them, and then drying them) and signed with about 4150 names. 

This strange looking stone is known as the Burgh Muir stone. The Burgh Muir was an area to south of Edinburgh and was part of the ancient forest of Drumselch (I am loving these Scottish names). It served many purposes including execution, isolation for people with the plague, and plague pits. The stone itself however also had an interesting history. I can't quite remember the details but supposedly it had sat under the chair of every Scot crowned until the British stole it. However the Scottish then stole it back and legend says that this stone is in fact the fake one, and that the real one was hidden somewhere in Scotland.

On the left here you can see a golf ball belonging to Robert Louis Stevenson that was found in his garden many years later. On the right are the original hollowed out tree-trunks that were used as water pipes under medieval Edinburgh 

 

This 17th C wardrobe made me instantly think of 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe', it took all my willpower not to open it and climb inside in hopes of finding Narnia.

More dramatic sites while wandering the city.