Alexander Clerk of Pittencrieff

Sir Alexander Clerk of Pittencrieff (1600 – c. 1660) was a 17th-century Scottish merchant who twice served as Provost of Edinburgh.

He was born in Edinburgh on 23 September 1600 the eldest son of Alexander Clerk of Stenton in East Lothian and his wife, Marion Primrose.

His father was a merchant who bought Pittencrieff House in 1610 and served as Provost of Edinburgh from 1623 to 1625.

In 1633 he was knighted by King Charles I during his visit to the city, the ceremony taking place at the Cross of St John on the Canongate.

He was Provost at the outbreak of the English Civil War which was an extremely troubled period.