Historical landmark
South Bridge Vaults
Sealed sandstone chambers beneath a rushed eighteenth-century bridge, flooded within years and forgotten for over a century.
0:00≈ 2 min
Location
0:00≈ 2 min
About this audio guide
This guide to the South Bridge Vaults beneath Edinburgh's Old Town follows the nineteen brick arches finished in 1788, sold to shopkeepers as prime real estate before rising damp drove them out within a decade. It traces who moved in next: Irish families and Highlanders displaced by famine and the Clearances, crowded into windowless rooms alongside illegal taverns and gambling dens, plus the persistent rumor tying Burke and Hare to the vaults.
This audio guide was created using AI.