The Edinburgh Mercat Cross

The Edinburgh Mercat Cross – located beside St. Giles Cathedral and Parliment Square on the infamous Royal Mile – is a sight full of both history and horror.

The Mercat Cross in Edinburgh

This is the place where Edinburgh’s criminal class found their ears nailed to the Edinburgh Mercat Cross (mercat being a spelling of the Scottish pronunciation of the word “Market”) when caught in their crimes, and where the mobs gathered to stone those unlucky enough to be sentenced to such a dismal fate.

Nearby shops and restaurants give hardly a glimpse of the macabre stories that tell the history of the Edinburgh Mercat Cross. Tour companies depart from the Edinburgh Mercat Cross to show visitors the sights and sounds of the city, from the winding closes that wheedle their way between tenement buildings to the underground vaults created when the city government built the massive bridges that help the city lay itself out along two levels.

[image credit darjeeling wanderer]

Edinburgh’s Mercat Cross, A Central Feature

Edinburgh's Mercat Cross features a unicorn on a high pedestal

At Halloween, nearby Parliament Square is filled with the Beltane Fire Society’s Samhain rituals, which begin at the top of the Royal Mile and progress by torchlight down to Parliament Square, culminating in a battle where the spirit of winter slays that of summer. At Hogmanay, Edinburgh’s version of Times Square’s New Year’s celebration, the streets are crammed with tourists and locals enjoying a toast and the verses of Auld Lang Syne.

As in Medieval times, the Edinburgh Mercat cross is a central part of the city – a monument to days gone by and a gathering point for the energies of this fine city as it moves into the twenty-first century. With so many attractions and opportunities within minutes’ walk of the monument, it makes for a first-rate stopping point for any visitors to the city.

[image credit itmpa]