The East Wall

The East Wall of Greyfriars Kirkyard (that backs on to Candlemaker Row) has a line of 17th century monuments. This annotated photograph shows my suggestion that the monument second from the right was originally raised for Alexander Miller, the Tailor to James VI, who died in 1616. Now conventional wisdom says that the Alexander Miller memorial was originally near where the main gate into the Kirkyard now is from Candlemaker Row and that when that gateway and the Recorders Office (now Bobby’s Bothy used by City of the Dead Tours) was built Alexander Miller’s memorial was removed, never to be seen again. But I suggest either Alexander Miller’s memorial was simply moved 75 yards or so to the North and re erected here, or possibly that it was always here and the suggestion that it was originally where the gate now is was incorrect. The Theatre of Mortality book written by Robert Monteith in 1704 places Alexander Miller’s memorial between Dennistoun & Harlay (or at least that is the order he lists their inscriptions). It was James Brown in 1897 who wrote that Miller’s memorial had been taken away when the gateway and the Recorders Office was built. James Brown gives the details of this memorial (2nd from the right) as being that for Robert Purves, who was around in the 19th century. Obviously the monument itself is a 17th century work, but Purves probably bought it to use as his family memorial, thereby removing any reference to Alexander Miller. This was the fate of a number of other memorials along the East Wall. What do you think ?