Old Town, Edinburgh

After my visit to Britannia, I went on to Edinburgh and had a wonderful walk around Old Town where I managed to run in and see the last 15 minutes of a wonderful photography exhibition of works by the American photographer Edward Weston, an early to mid twentieth century artist. Weston had an interest in those wonderful positive and negative spaces that can be revealed in black and white photography and the exhibition was filled with wonderful studies of both vegetable and human form. There were a couple of images of a nautilus shell that were particularly memorable, the shapes seemed to be mimicked in a study of a nude woman he did some time later. Unfortunately I couldn't persuade them to let me up to see William Wegman's dogs which finished that day, but I'll be going back as the shop had some great local works...

I then went up to the Royal Mile which runs from Holyrood Palace up to Edinburgh Castle (famous for its annual tattoo which as a child I thought happened at Christmas time). I called into a wonderful little place called the Scottish Storytelling Centre which also runs the John Knox House. John Knox played a pivotal role in the Scottish reformation and the establishment of the Presbyterian church in the mid 16^th Century and is said to have been one of the main figures behind the abdication of Mary Queen of Scots who was staunchly Catholic. The exhibition in the house interweaves the story of John Knox, who is believed to have spent the last few months of his life in the house, with that of James Mossman. Mossman was a goldsmith and the Keeper of the Royal Mint. A staunch supporter of Mary and Catholicism, Mossman was eventually hung for leading a revolt.

The house was built in the mid 1500s and rescued by the Church of Scotland in 1850 to tell the story of John Knox. At that time the Old Town area had become a slum and was one of the most densely populated areas of Europe with up to 10 people living in a single room. While there is no disabled access to the upper floors, an interactive audiovisual has been developed that provides detailed views of all of the rooms.

The house sensitively tells the intertwined stories of John Knox and James Mossman within a significant heritage site complete with a beautifully painted ceiling. I was impressed with the use of carefully lit showcases which display a series of original John Knox publications and the puzzles children were invited to play with.