Buildings of Distinction - The Scott Monument

Buildings of Distinction - The Scott Monument

Jan, 14 2025


Sir Walter Scott had pride and place in Scotland as an established author. His legacy is remembered in both Edinburgh Waverley Railway Station (after his novels) and the Victorian Gothic monument, better known as The Scott Monument.

Please watch this 4 minute 19 second film as an intrepid reporter goes ‘Climbing the Scott Monument in Edinburgh, Scotland’ – Don’t feel obliged to subscribe at the end -

Due to the impact he made in the city of Edinburgh, locals felt a competition to design a monument in memory of Scott was a fitting tribute following his death. An unlikely entrant became George Meikle Kemp, a 45 year old joiner, draftsman and self – taught architect. George doubted his abilities yet his design surpassed his competitors and so the judges awarded him the contract to construct the monument in 1838.

In total there 64 figures of characters from Scott’s novels, sculpted by highly skilled sculptors mostly made up of men who made up the large army to bring to life the design by George.

The work was carried out in closed sheds, where they were exposed to large quantities of dangerous fine dust. This didn’t prevent them from grafting hard on the monument although there were health warnings. Edinburgh masons were known to be more susceptible to phthisis, the term used at the time for silicosis. Unfortunately, there was a sad death toll in the construction of the monument as at least 23 died and one half of the masons employed died of lung disease.

Two years had passed since George had been given access to design the monument and now in 1840, the foundation stone was laid by Sir James Forrest of Comiston. The final completion was sealed in 1844 with an inauguration on 15th August 1846. George though was not present to see it’s finish as he had sadly fallen into the Union Canal while walking home from the site and drowned on the foggy evening of 6 March 1844.

150 years later and a thorough clean was proposed in the 1990s to spruce up the overall look and impression to the public for the tourist attraction in the city of Edinburgh. This included a hefty restoration upgrade which cost in total £2.36 million and was funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, Historic Scotland and the City of Edinburgh Council.

The council installed a new super deluxe LED lighting system in 2016 with the intention to highlight the monument’s architectural features with a soft warm glow.

You can admire this glow by visiting the Scott Monument courtesy of Edinburgh museums. For more information simply visit the following website link -https://www.edinburghmuseums.org.uk/venue/scott-monument

In popular culture the monument is featured prominently in the 2012 film Cloud Atlas, as a location which the character Robert Frobisher frequents. In addition, an imagined copy of the monument is featured in the 1899 painting by James Ford, Holiday Time in Cape Town, depicting a Victorian era imagined utopian future Cape Town.

However, nothing beats the original as it stands poised to attract and enthral as the central landmark in the city of Edinburgh in memory of one of its most famous authors, the legendary – Sir Walter Scott.

^ Alex Ashworth CCG UK Blogger