The Royal Mile, one of the most famous streets in Edinburgh, runs from the castle all the way down to Holyrood Palace. When Edinburgh castle was first established this was the only accessible route, a natural ramp formed thousands of years ago gave access to a castle otherwise impregnable from the east. With the establishment […]
The Sgian Dubh is a small edged knife, usually 3-4 inches in length, that is worn as part of the traditional Highland dress tucked into the top of the kilt hose with only the handle visible. It’s origins are fairly unclear, although it is now a purely ornamental item, most communally applied with an underage […]
The quaich is a traditional Scottish drinking vessel which was used to offer a guest a cup of welcome and also a farewell drink, usually a dram of whisky. The quaich has a rich heritage in Scotland. Indeed, they are a uniquely Scottish invention, having no apparent connection to any other European drinking vessel. […]
Last week we asked our fantastic audience, or our ScotClans family if you will, a very simple question… What do you think is the most valuable invention/discovery/creation to come from a Scot? You all replied with some amazing answers, so first of all I would like to say thank you. ScotClans really does love having […]
The Scott Monument, sometimes referred to as the ‘gothic rocket’, is a Victorian Gothic monument to the author Sir Walter Scott. It stands towards the east end of Princes Street in Edinburgh, and happens to be the largest monument to a writer in the world, and was completed on August 1st 1846. Scott was a […]
On Wednesday 22nd July Edinburgh Zoo celebrated the 102nd anniversary of the day it first opened to the public. Going from strength to strength through the years the zoo has become Scotland’s second largest paid for tourist attraction, only being beaten by Edinburgh castle, and attracting over 600,000 visitors every year. This week we will […]
Glamis Castle, found in the Angus area, is the historic seat of the Lyon family. The estate was presented to Sir John Lyon as a gift by Robert II in 1376. The Bowes-Lyon family, as they are now, still owns the castle and grounds as the Earls of Strathmore. The family has a large link […]
With the Forth Bridge having recently joined five other areas of Scotland as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, we thought this week we would take a look at what makes these sites so special and worth preserving for future generations. If you were not aware UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and […]
After more than a year of consideration by the UN cultural committee, the Forth Bridge has finally been awarded the coveted Unesco World Heritage status. The Forth Bridge shares this status with only five other sites around the country, New Lanark, St Kilda, the Old and New Towns in Edinburgh, Neolithic Orkney and the Antonine […]
Having grown up just a few miles east of Edinburgh and lived within the city my entire adult life, I’ve always had great views of the Islands of the Forth travelling around. This week whilst gazing out at the great view of Inchkeith Island from the sands of Portobello I wondered what the island had […]
