New Old College Quad

The original College of the University of Edinburgh was founded in 1583 at the instigation of Edinburgh Town Council. The first Principal was Robert Rollock, a graduate of St. Andrews and disciple of George Buchanan.

The foundation stone of the present Old College was laid in 1789, with the original plan of the building prepared by Robert Adam, who died in 1792 - before the building had been completed.

After Adam's death the work on Old College was hindered by the Napoleonic Wars and it was not until 1816 that William Playfair, at the age of 27, was appointed to complete the building.

From the School of Law website.

And in 2011 they completed the quad...

The quad has been landscaped thanks to an anonymous donation. Before it was landscaped a whole lot of cool junk was found there on an archaeological dig.

Today I happened to be using Old College as a short cut and realised that the quad landscaping had finished. I'd already taken a blip for the day but couldn't resist nipping up to one corner to take a picture. It seems almost a shame that the place will usually be overrun with law students. The netting is presumably to stop either drunks or those dreading their exams from tossing themselves over the side.

And here's the alternative blip. Kitty told you not to park there!