The Back of the Old Jail, Edinburgh

Category

Library Item

Item no

2857

Title

The back of the old jail, Edinburgh

Description

Tenement buildings can be seen behind the old jail on the Royal Mile. Boots hang from a wall next to a doorway. Nearby soldiers sit under a lamp keeping watch on the prison. Close-by people congregate next to a well.

Artist / maker

Somerville, Daniel

Engraver

Leith, S.

Date

1817

Size

18.7 x 26 cm

Type

Lithograph

Location

Edinburgh and Scottish Collection

The Tolbooth was Edinburgh's administrative centre and prison, and was also the site of many executions. It stood immediately to the west of St Giles Cathedral, and was demolished in 1817. Passers-by would show their dislike for this institution by spitting on its step. This habit persists today at the 'Heart of Midlothian', a cobbled heart which marks where the Tolbooth stood.

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Related subjects

Crime and punishment > Crime and punishment facilities > Prisons

Landscape > Water > Wells

Places > Edinburgh areas > Old Town

Places > Edinburgh areas > Royal Mile

Places > Scotland > Edinburgh

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