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Photo: Gary Campbell-Hall from Edinburgh, UK, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
It is an attractive hamlet down in the dene - the steep valley - of the Water of Leith. It was the medieval crossing point on the route from Edinburgh to South Queensferry, and is the main access point for this section of the Water of Leith Walkway (described below). The fast-descending stream drove 11 grain mills here, so it was the powerbase for the Baxters, the bakers' merchant guild. The present bridge across the stream was built in the 18th century, only just wide enough for a horse and cart. The village declined in the 19th century when bigger flour mills were built at Leith, and bypassed in 1833 when Telford's Dean Bridge spanned the valley; the Belford Bridge was added upstream in 1887. Dean village therefore never developed modern roads or industry, so its charming core was preserved.
Dean Village is a former village immediately northwest of the city centre of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is bounded by Belford Road to the south and west, Belgrave Crescent Gardens to the north and below the Dean Bridge to the east. It was formerly known as the "Water of Leith Village" and was a successful grain milling area for more than 800 years. At one time there were no fewer than eleven working mills there, driven by water from the Water of Leith.
© OpenStreetMap contributors
is best seen from below in Dean Village as you follow the walkway along the stream - from the top it's just a busy thoroughfare. Crossing in four arches 107 ft / 32 m above the stream, it was Telford's last major project. As well as improving the route to Fife, it made the north bank into prime real estate, so elegant terraces were built there.
Opposite side of Belford Rd has a slightly smaller collection, but enough to infuriate about one-in-five reviewers, who rage that their kids' drawings stuck on the fridge door are better. A neon sign in the garden reassures all and sundry that "There will be no miracles".
This stonking great neo-Gothic church was completed in 1879, designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott, with the towers added in 1917. It's the senior Episcopal church in Scotland, within the Anglican tradition of bishops (and much else) that the Presbyterians rejected. It has daily choral services: the song school (open occasionally) has stunning murals by Phoebe Anna Traquair.
This townhouse was designed by Robert Adam, completed in 1796 and has been furnished in the style of its first owner John Lamont. Its last private owner the Marquess of Bute also acquired adjacent townhouses and along with the other owners got the entire north facade of the square restored to Adams' imposing original design. Visit by self-guided tour, and in mid-summer you need to book as it sells out.
The original modern art gallery, established in 1960, was in the Botanic Gardens. In 1895 it moved into this neoclassical building, originally a refuge for fatherless children, and in 1999 it expanded across the road into the neoclassical orphanage now known as Modern Two. The gardens of Modern One have been sculpted. Both buildings have extensive contemporary collections and most visitors find that seeing one of them is plenty for an afternoon.
An old red phone box has been kitted out with Edwardian memorabilia, and nicknamed for Sir Giles Gilbert Scott (1880-1960) designer of the box. You can look in the windows anytime, or collect the key for £3 (for Save the Children) from Stewart Christie and Co who run a long established gentleman's outfitter in the shop next to it.