Blood and Guts: The Twists and Turns of Edinburgh’s Medical History
Duration: 90 minutes
Age suitability: 10+
Price: Adult ticket £18.95, Concessions £15.95, Child ticket (5yrs-16yrs) £9.95
Meeting point: Surgeons Hall Museum Nicolson Street Edinburgh EH8 9D
Accessibility:
Join Surgeons Hall Museums on their 5 star walking tour through Edinburgh’s old town.
We will take you through the highs and lows of Edinburgh’s world-renowned medical history. Discover the intrigues, rivalries and dedication to the cause as our guide leads you through the sites where anatomists, surgeons and physicians worked, operated and squabbled in the quest for medical advancement.
Drawn from the archives at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh you will hear little known accounts of iconic writers, chloroform tea parties, pioneering women, grave robbing and of course Britain’s first serial killers the infamous Burke and Hare. Hear tales of old Edinburgh, disease, dissection and curious methods of treatment.
Tours will last between 75 and 90min and include free museum access from 10am-5pm on the day of your tour. We always aim to be finished by 75mins, but, due to the nature of a walking tour, factors out with our control may lengthen this. We recommend that you allow for 1 hour 30.
Meeting Point: Please arrive in good time for you tour. Your guide will meet you at the entrance to Surgeons Hall Museums (in front of the sculptures)
Please note that this is an outdoor walking tour that runs throughout the year so please dress accordingly. Not all the sites we visit are dog friendly and therefore we admit assistance dogs only.
Age Guidance: Age 10+
Content Warning: Our collections contain human remains as well as representations of anatomy, injury, and disease that some may find upsetting.
Accessibility: Tour led in English with a BSL interpreter. This is an outdoor walking tour that covers approximately 1.2 miles of Edinburgh’s city centre. Due to the historical nature of some of the sights we visit the ground can be uneven, but we can ask our guides to avoid taking any routs that involve steps to accommodate wheelchair users. The museum is also fully wheelchair accessible.