The Scott Monument

Scott Monument - Gothic monument to the memory of Sir Walter Scott (who died in 1832) was built in 1840-46. Placed in Princes Street Gardens, below Edinburgh Castle, the building rises 200.5 feet and has 287 steps to the top. The foundations to support the structure are 52ft deep.

The views from the top of the Edinburgh skyline is tremendous. The statue of Scott below the arches of the monument, by Sir John Steel, is made of white Carrara marble. The 30-ton block of marble actually fell into the harbour at Leghorn in Italy on its way to Edinburgh, but that does not seem to have had any adverse effect! The monument is decorated with 64 statuettes, illustrating many of the characters from Scott's novels, placed there in the 1870s, some years after the monument had been completed.

We climbed, we conquered, we got certificates as proof.