History
By Kate McLelland
The Tale of Greyfriars Bobby Visit the Edinburgh Museum, situated on the city’s famous Royal Mile, and you’ll discover a wealth of beautiful objects, from exquisitely cut glassware to antique clocks and historic paintings. Of all the lovely art and craft pieces, ancient documents and historical items to be found on display here, one glass case stands out: not for its fine objets d’art, but for its humble contents. The case contains a statue of a small dog, a collar and a feeding bowl, together with a few faded sepia photographs. At nearby Candlemaker Row, you’ll find a drinking fountain topped by a statue of a dog that closely resembles the figure in the glass case. The inscription reads: “A tribute to the affectionate fidelity of Greyfriars Bobby. In 1858, this faithful dog followed the remains of his master to Greyfriars Churchyard and lingered near the spot until his death in 1872.” Canine fame ‘Greyfriars Bobby’ was a Skye terrier who reputedly spent fourteen years guarding the grave of his
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owner, until he finally died in January 1972. Bobby owed his name to the graveyard of Greyfriars Kirk, where he became something of a local celebrity. It’s reported that crowds would gather at the entrance of the graveyard almost daily, waiting for the one o’clock gun that Bobby took as his signal to leave the grave for his midday meal. Baroness Angela Georgina Burdett-Coutts, President of the Ladies Committee of the RSPCA, was so deeply moved by his story that she sought permission from the City Council to erect a public drinking fountain with a statue of Bobby mounted on top. Since that time a novel has been written about Bobby’s life (‘Greyfriars Bobby’ by Eleanor Atkinson, published in 1912) and two films have celebrated his life: ‘Greyfriars Bobby’ (1961) and ‘The Adventures of Greyfriars Bobby’ (2006). How the legend began As you might expect of such a well-loved story, there are several different versions of Bobby’s life and some of the details have been called into question. The most generally accepted account
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