Instead of shovels, we are using non-invasive ground penetrating radar to explore secrets hidden beneath the ground without disturbing historical remains. Hear hot-off-the-press survey findings, then try operating the ground penetrating radar equipment yourself!
Date & Time: Sunday, 18 October 2026 | 11am – 3pm
Location: Museum of Edinburgh & Greyfriars Kirkyard
A busy afternoon in the Kirkyard. The Friends continued cross-referencing monuments as part of the Legacies in Stone recording project. There was the usual litter picking, which we’re getting on top of thanks to the installation of the wheelie-bins. And Liz cleaned the interpretation panel until she could see her face in it. Not to mention helping numerous visitors with their quests to find Tom Riddle and Bobby.
A good turnout today saw us Litter Picking, Gravel Gathering, Fence Fixing, Sign Shining, Buddleia Bashing, Seat Washing & Mud Larking. With the gravel washed away by the August Monsoon returned to its proper location, the muddy soil that had spread on to the path returned to the flower bed, the bird poop washed off the seats & signs, the Buddleia removed from the south wall, the fence posts along the edge of McGonagal restored to an upright position and all remaining litter picked and put in the bins. The result is a nice and tidy, clean, welcoming & happy kirkyard. Many thanks to all of the old and new members who came along to help today !
The Summer surge is now in full swing, with the Kirkyard looking like crowds attending a football match at times today. This volume of visitors brings a tsunami of litter with it. So it was a particularly good start to the day today with a mammoth load of litter, rubbish and assorted nasties leaving the Kirkyard after a big clean up effort over the last 24 hours. Paul Cunningham was definitely the star for the shear volume and weight of rubbish he lifted today.
In slightly less positive news the downpour of rain midweek washed a lot of mud & gravel down the Yard, which has once again clogged the gutter above the bottom steps and coated the Grassmarket steps in mud, particularly foul smelling mud at the bottom where the drain is still blocked. Tom was once again the star man for cleaning up the bottom section and the steps, but non of us could face clearing the gutter again. One bit of progress has been the complete clearance of buddleia and ivy from the George Heriot tomb, aided by a resident of Candlemaker Row who has leant out of their window to cut back the ivy that we couldn’t reach.
We had another good turnout today, but in all of the work I forgot to take a group photo. Our next First Sunday is on the 6th September.
Crowds in the Kirkyard this morning.The lorry load of rubbish ready for departure. It took a big effort to collect all of this rubbish over the last 24 hours and Paul C did most of it. Fantastic job !Tom looking rather downcast because all of his work to keep this gutter clear in recent weeks was thwarted by the midweek downpour. That washed mud and gravel down to once again block this gutter.This is what the gutter looked like before the downpour. Sadly the drainage in the Kirkyard simply can’t cope with heavy rain.By contrast, this is what George Heriot looked like a couple of weeks ago. Lots of buddleia and ivy covering the monument. We had cleared it from the face of the monument but not from the top.By contrast, this is what George Heriot looked like a couple of weeks ago. Lots of buddleia and ivy covering the monument. We had cleared it from the face of the monument but not from the top.
Great to see some new youthful faces at today’s First Sunday (despite the damp weather). We had a good go at removing the Buddleia from the monuments along the East Wall and picked up all of the fallen branches from the recent high winds. Plus a thorough litterpick. We then had a Geek session looking at Marriage related stories around the Kirkyard, in preparation for a wedding party tour soon. A very productive and enjoyable afternoon, many thanks to everyone who came along and grafted today.
A full day for the Friends in the Kirkyard today. We started off with a Tour Training session where we discussed what goes in to making a good tour. Lots of ideas and examples were covered and hopefully more of us will be ready, willing & able to lead Tours in the Kirkyard in future. We took the opportunity to do a quick “Then & Now” photo at the Martyrs Monument. We then did a bumper litter pick and bin emptying session. This time of year sees the litter accumulation rate increase rapidly and the Crows and Squirrels get into the bins and spread the litter far & wide. But a big team effort had the place looking spic ‘n span just in time for this afternoon’s Tour. Our Tours today & tomorrow are to mark National Cemeteries week. A pretty good turn out of 20 plus local folk came along and were shown why we are so passionate about this place.
Thanks to everyone who came along and helped out or took part today. It was a really good day, albeit quite a long and tiring one.
The Litter Picking teamThe Tour Training TeamThe Tour TeamThe Now & Then at the Martyrs Monument 2026 v 1912
A chilly day saw the big coats back on, but we kept warm with some vigorous weeding. Our first task was to tidy up the Hutton burial lair so it looks its best for his upcoming anniversary. We then weeded a few other lairs, including Mary Erskine, Little & Hunter Blair.
Our Graveyard Geek session today looked at early 18th century memorials. These are a real mixed bag in terms of location, size & style compared to most 17th century examples.
Many thanks to everyone on our hard working team today.
The next First Sunday is on 7th June, we hope to see you there.
Today we got closer to learning “What secrets lie beneath John Bayne’s feet?”
It was our day to investigate one of Greyfriars Kirkyard’s most famous — yet puzzling – monuments and learn how we hope to save it for the future.The Mystery of the Bayne Ledger Stone From a bow-maker’s workshop to the King’s inner legal circle, John Bayne’s rise to ‘Writer to the Signet’ was a 17th-century success story. But did his ambition extend below ground?
The ledger stone of John Bayne’s tomb is broken. In repairing it, we have a unique opportunity to look deeper. We are investigating whether this gravestone serves as the ‘lid’ to a hidden burial vault.
This event is brought to you by Edinburgh World Heritage, the Friends of Greyfriars Kirkyard, and the City of Edinburgh Council as part of the Legacies in Stone project. Funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, thanks to National Lottery players.
Here are some of the best photos I captured from the event. I’ll let one of the other committee members share what we found, and what is still to be determined (ground-penetrating radar is up next!)
Today’s First Sunday saw us facing a strong & bitterly cold wind, with frequent rain showers. Never the less we did what we had to do in the Kirkyard, before making a beeline for the relative warmth & shelter of the museum. But most of the tourists in town today had the same idea, so the place was heaving. We escaped the crowds by ascending to the rooftop terrace where we got a rather good view back over the Kirkyard.
The next First Sunday is on 3rd May, when it will surely no longer be wintery weather. Hope to see you there.
So today was a busy day of activity & progress in the Kirkyard. Lesley & I started by delivering a full 2 hour tour for the Govan Stones Project. 18 of them travelled over from Glasgow to learn about the Kirkyard. They were all lovely, enthusiastic and knowledgeable people who seemed delighted with their tour.
We then grabbed a quick coffee before meeting Maddie from Edinburgh University who is doing a study of the Mackenzie Mausoleum. She loved getting up close to the mausoleum and we loved learning from Maddie about her project.
We then met Andy & Kevin from Edinburgh Bereavement Services who we assisted fit a new lamppost in the Kirkyard.
We then helped Andy & Kevin off load and install three new seats in the Kirkyard. Two of these seats have been funded by donations from an American Member of the Friends (who is an ancestor of Lord Warriston) and the the third is funded from the sale of our books. The seats are positioned by the Covenanters Prison, by the Grassmarket steps and in the west yard. They look great and should give people an opportunity to sit, rest and enjoy the Kirkyard for many years to come.
