Publication Account

Date 1981

Event ID 1018066

Category Descriptive Accounts

Type Publication Account

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1018066

Located in the High Street, the so-called John Knox's House is one of Edinburgh's most picturesque houses and is also the sole remaining example of the timber-fronted galleries which were once so common in the capital city (RCAM, 1951, 97). The house is four storeys high with a floor beneath ground level. The claim that it was John Knox's House goes no further back than 1784 (RCAM, 1951, 96), and was the subject of a spirited debate in the freceedings of the Seciety of Antiquaries of Scot-land in the late nineteenth century. C. Guthrie went to great lengths to attempt to prove that the house was indeed that of John Knox (1890-91, 333-351), but P. Miller argued convincingly that the dwelling belonged to Geerge, Abeot of Dunfermline. Miller also pointed out that two great early historians of Edinburgh, Maitland and Arnot, make no mention of the house (1890-91, 138-153). After receiving the advice of the Dean of Guild that it was in a ruinous condition and ought to be removed, the house was instead extensively restored in 1849 (Guthrie, 1890-91, 333).

Information from ‘Historic Edinburgh, Canongate and Leith: The Archaeological Implications of Development’ (1981).