- Gilmerton Cove
Gilmerton Cove is a series of
underground passageway s andchamber s hand-carved fromsandstone located beneath the streets ofGilmerton , an ex-mining village, now a suburb ofEdinburgh ,Scotland .A five-year collaborative project between Gilmerton Heritage Trust and The City of Edinburgh Council allowed the newly-restored Cove to open in 2005 as an educational resource for the community as well as a fun place to visit.
There are many theories about the origins of the Cove and its purpose. It is known that it was the 18th century residence of local
blacksmith ,George Paterson . Theparish records show that he was reprimanded for allowing alcohol to be consumed within the Cove on the sabbath.It is not known whether George Paterson was responsible for carving the Cove.
Popular theories are that it was used as a drinking
den for localgentry , aCovenanters refuge, and asmuggler s' lair. Extensive archaeological and historical research has failed to resolve the mystery. In 2007, the documentary television series "Cities of the Underworld " featured Gilmerton Cove in the episode "Scotland's Sin City" which postulates that the Cove was linked to a nearbyHellfire Club building via asecret passage .External links
* [http://www.gilmertoncove.org.uk/ The Mystery of Gilmerton Cove] official website
* [http://heritage.scotsman.com/myths.cfm?id=200542006 The Scotsman: "Secrets below the streets of Edinburgh"]
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