Makars' Court

It forms part of Lady Stair's Close, which connects the Lawnmarket with The Mound to the north, and is next to the Writers' Museum.

Described as an "evolving national literary monument",[1] the courtyard incorporates quotations from Scottish literature inscribed onto paving slabs.

The Scots language term makar denotes an author or writer,[2] though stressing their role as a "skilled and versatile worker in the craft of writing".

[3] In 1997, twelve Scottish writers were selected by the Saltire Society, and quotations from their works were inscribed on stone slabs installed in the area adjacent to the museum.

The first was unveiled by Ronald Harwood, then president of International PEN, and the rest by poet Iain Crichton Smith.