2023.08993a The Observatory House on the Calton Hill, Edinburgh, viewed from the north-east.
Observatory House is an A-listed Building. The following description is from Historic Environment Scotland:
( portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/LB27608 )
"Old Observatory House is of great importance for several reasons. It is one of the very few extant buildings designed by James Craig, the planner of Edinburgh?s first New Town. It is a well-known landmark in Edinburgh and is a vital component in the group of buildings (of which Old Observatory House is the earliest) on Calton Hill which are both architecturally and culturally significant in the history of the city and the nation. It is also highly significant in the history of astronomy in Scotland. In addition, the roof of the tower of Old Observatory House was the viewing point from which the world?s first 360? panorama, Robert Barker?s 'Panoramic View from Calton Hill,' was painted in the late 1780s.
The idea of an observatory was first put forward in the mid-18th century, and a fund was set up accordingly, but it was not until the 1770s that firm proposals were received by the Council. These came from Thomas Short, an Edinburgh optician and instrument maker who had inherited his brother James? respected telescope making business. Short proposed to build a relatively basic observatory, but following an increase in funding the scheme became more complex; the final proposal included an octagonal observatory with flanking pavilions for storage and a further, smaller observatory with accommodation for a keeper. James Craig began preparing the plans in 1775, and in 1776 the buildings were begun.
However, several sources report that Robert Adam suggested to Craig that a castellated appearance would be appropriate for the smaller Observatory House, recommending ?the appearance of a fortification?.with buttresses and embrasures, and having Gothick towers on the angles? (Arnot); (it is not certain a what point Craig altered his scheme to accommodate the increased funding and Adam?s recommendations; a plan (E.C.A.) of the site and proposed observatory, drawn by the surveyor John Laurie as late as 20th April 1776, shows a very simple scheme.) All concerned were so taken by the design that the building of the octagonal observatory was all but abandoned to concentrate on the construction of the Observatory House. This consumed all the available finance for the project, and in 1777 construction halted, with only one of the four intended buttressed towers and the compound wall complete. By 1780, a 2-bay, 3-storey wing to the east was extant, and Kincaid?s plan of 1784 is the first indication of a single storey wing to the north. However, the exact date of these wings is not clear, and it may be that they were completed in, or soon after, 1777. The mason for the project was William Pirnie, the plumber William Scott and John Sibbald was the smith who supplied the ironmongery and hardware. Many of the tradesmen were owed wages for several years, and even Craig himself was writing to the council as late as 1792 to demand unpaid architect?s fees.
After the funding ran out in 1771, the council withdrew from the contract, and siezed Short?s telescope in leu of payments. There then ensured a complicated wrangle over ownership which continued after Short?s death in 1788 until the telescope was finally reclaimed by his daughter Maria in 1820. Meanwhile, in 1788 the council took control of the project in partnership with James Douglas, Short?s grandson, who undertook to finish the Observatory. However, it seems that Douglas? contribution was limited, and that the project was completed in a style far inferior to the original plan. Douglas appears to have focused on the Observatory House rather than the main Octagonal Observatory (although a painting of 1799 by Adam Callender shows the Octagonal Observatory completed with a domed roof). The roof of the tower of Observatory House was fitted with a rotating roof with a 17ft diameter iron wheel. The 'New Observatory?, based in the Observatory House was opened in 1793. However, in the same year Douglas went to sea to escape financial problems, and the tenancy of the observatory was taken on by his wife. She sub-let it to Robert Bowman, an optical instrument maker, who shared the compound with the Town Militia who used it as an arsenal. By 1802 the building was reported to be in a state of bad repair. Bowman asked the council for funds for repair but was denied.
In 1811 the Astronomical Society was formed and the lease of the Observatory site subsequently transferred to them. The small building to the NE of Old Observatory House was built to house a transit instrument. They made plans for a new observatory (Playfair?s City Observatory, see separate Listing), on the site of Short?s original octagonal observatory, for scientific research, and adapted Old Observatory House for use as a popular observatory and camera obscura. The keeper of the of the observatories was housed in the single storey N wing until around the mid-nineteenth century, when the camera obscura seems to have closed, and the whole of Old Observatory House was given over to accommodation for the Assistant Astronomer.
In 1883, the Astronomer Royal of the time, Charles Piazzi Smyth, instigated the extension and upgrading of Old Observatory House. Consequently the building was extended in a Scots Baronial style: the second bay of the east wing was partially rebuilt and a third bay added; the north wing was also altered and given an additional two stories. An entrance porch was also added at the re-entrant angle.
In 1896, the Astronomer Royal moved to Blackford Hill to escape the city smog, and the observatory compound returned to the council. Playfair?s observatory became the City Observatory, and Old Observatory House found use as a council house. It is not currently occupied (2002).
The painted ceiling in the 2nd floor tower room is thought to have been painted in the early twentieth century. The choice of subject is particularly appropriate for the dome of an observatory; it depicts a story from the ancient Norse / Scandinavian Creation myth. Part of this legend describes how the sun and moon were placed in chariots which pulled them across the sky, eternally pursued by two wolves, Skoll and Hati."
Wikipedia references:
2023.08993a The Observatory House on the Calton Hill, Edinburgh, viewed from the north-east.
Observatory House is an A-listed Building. The following description is from Historic Environment Scotland:
( portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/LB27608 )
"Old Observatory House is of great importance for several reasons. It is one of the very few extant buildings designed by James Craig, the planner of Edinburgh?s first New Town. It is a well-known landmark in Edinburgh and is a vital component in the group of buildings (of which Old Observatory House is the earliest) on Calton Hill which are both architecturally and culturally significant in the history of the city and the nation. It is also highly significant in the history of astronomy in Scotland. In addition, the roof of the tower of Old Observatory House was the viewing point from which the world?s first 360? panorama, Robert Barker?s 'Panoramic View from Calton Hill,' was painted in the late 1780s.
The idea of an observatory was first put forward in the mid-18th century, and a fund was set up accordingly, but it was not until the 1770s that firm proposals were received by the Council. These came from Thomas Short, an Edinburgh optician and instrument maker who had inherited his brother James? respected telescope making business. Short proposed to build a relatively basic observatory, but following an increase in funding the scheme became more complex; the final proposal included an octagonal observatory with flanking pavilions for storage and a further, smaller observatory with accommodation for a keeper. James Craig began preparing the plans in 1775, and in 1776 the buildings were begun.
However, several sources report that Robert Adam suggested to Craig that a castellated appearance would be appropriate for the smaller Observatory House, recommending ?the appearance of a fortification?.with buttresses and embrasures, and having Gothick towers on the angles? (Arnot); (it is not certain a what point Craig altered his scheme to accommodate the increased funding and Adam?s recommendations; a plan (E.C.A.) of the site and proposed observatory, drawn by the surveyor John Laurie as late as 20th April 1776, shows a very simple scheme.) All concerned were so taken by the design that the building of the octagonal observatory was all but abandoned to concentrate on the construction of the Observatory House. This consumed all the available finance for the project, and in 1777 construction halted, with only one of the four intended buttressed towers and the compound wall complete. By 1780, a 2-bay, 3-storey wing to the east was extant, and Kincaid?s plan of 1784 is the first indication of a single storey wing to the north. However, the exact date of these wings is not clear, and it may be that they were completed in, or soon after, 1777. The mason for the project was William Pirnie, the plumber William Scott and John Sibbald was the smith who supplied the ironmongery and hardware. Many of the tradesmen were owed wages for several years, and even Craig himself was writing to the council as late as 1792 to demand unpaid architect?s fees.
After the funding ran out in 1771, the council withdrew from the contract, and siezed Short?s telescope in leu of payments. There then ensured a complicated wrangle over ownership which continued after Short?s death in 1788 until the telescope was finally reclaimed by his daughter Maria in 1820. Meanwhile, in 1788 the council took control of the project in partnership with James Douglas, Short?s grandson, who undertook to finish the Observatory. However, it seems that Douglas? contribution was limited, and that the project was completed in a style far inferior to the original plan. Douglas appears to have focused on the Observatory House rather than the main Octagonal Observatory (although a painting of 1799 by Adam Callender shows the Octagonal Observatory completed with a domed roof). The roof of the tower of Observatory House was fitted with a rotating roof with a 17ft diameter iron wheel. The 'New Observatory?, based in the Observatory House was opened in 1793. However, in the same year Douglas went to sea to escape financial problems, and the tenancy of the observatory was taken on by his wife. She sub-let it to Robert Bowman, an optical instrument maker, who shared the compound with the Town Militia who used it as an arsenal. By 1802 the building was reported to be in a state of bad repair. Bowman asked the council for funds for repair but was denied.
In 1811 the Astronomical Society was formed and the lease of the Observatory site subsequently transferred to them. The small building to the NE of Old Observatory House was built to house a transit instrument. They made plans for a new observatory (Playfair?s City Observatory, see separate Listing), on the site of Short?s original octagonal observatory, for scientific research, and adapted Old Observatory House for use as a popular observatory and camera obscura. The keeper of the of the observatories was housed in the single storey N wing until around the mid-nineteenth century, when the camera obscura seems to have closed, and the whole of Old Observatory House was given over to accommodation for the Assistant Astronomer.
In 1883, the Astronomer Royal of the time, Charles Piazzi Smyth, instigated the extension and upgrading of Old Observatory House. Consequently the building was extended in a Scots Baronial style: the second bay of the east wing was partially rebuilt and a third bay added; the north wing was also altered and given an additional two stories. An entrance porch was also added at the re-entrant angle.
In 1896, the Astronomer Royal moved to Blackford Hill to escape the city smog, and the observatory compound returned to the council. Playfair?s observatory became the City Observatory, and Old Observatory House found use as a council house. It is not currently occupied (2002).
The painted ceiling in the 2nd floor tower room is thought to have been painted in the early twentieth century. The choice of subject is particularly appropriate for the dome of an observatory; it depicts a story from the ancient Norse / Scandinavian Creation myth. Part of this legend describes how the sun and moon were placed in chariots which pulled them across the sky, eternally pursued by two wolves, Skoll and Hati."
Wikipedia references: