Old City Observatory

In addition to the famous monuments on Calton Hill, the old City Observatory can be found here. Inspired by a Greek temple of the Four Winds, the building was designed by William Henry Playfair in 1818. The first Astronomer Royal to work in this building was Professor Thomas Henderson, appointed 1834, who had discovered how to measure parallax and the distance to a star while in his previous job in South Africa

Edinburgh's City Observatory, also known as the Playfair Observatory, is a fascinating place, where the optimism and excitement of early scientific advances can still be felt.