Chambers Street

The Mound

Castle EsplanadeEdinburgh

Castle

Lawnmarket

Johnstone Terrace

Grassmarket

George IV B

ridge

Forrest Road

Lauriston Place

Heriot Place

Keir S

treet

Vic

toria

Street

A7 N

orth Bridge

City Chambers High Street (Royal Mile)

St Giles’Cathedral

The NationalLibrary of Scotland

Cowgate

Tron Kirk

South B

ridge

Bristo Place

Teviot Place

PotterrowBristoSquare

Crichton Street

Pedestrian

access

Pedestrianunderpass

A7 Nicolson Street

Marshall St

W N

icolso

n St

Nicolson

Square

St Mary’s Street

Hill Place

Pleasance

Drummond Street

Canongate

Infirmary Street

Holyrood Road

Blackfriars S

treet

Cowgate

Richm

ond Pl

W Rich

mond St

St John Street

HolyroodCampus

St Leonard’s Street

E Crosscauseway

A7 Clerk Street

Buccleuch Place

Buccleuch S

treet

Hope Park Terrace

Rankeillor Street

Gifford Park

to Pollock

Halls

Melville Drive

George Square

Middle M

eadow W

alk

Meadow Lane

to the King’s B

uildings

Cam

pus

King’s Stables Road

Chalm

ers Street

Lauriston Gardens

A700 Melville Drive

West Port

GreyfriarsKirk

GeorgeHeriot’s School

Surgeons’Hall

EdinburghCentral Mosque

FestivalTheatre

National Museumof Scotland

National PortraitGallery

Royal College of Physicians

Royal Societyof Edinburgh

The Balmoral Hotel

Quartermilecomplex

LauristonBuilding

Princes Street

George Street

Queen Street

St AndrewSquare

South S

t Andrew

Street

South S

t David S

treet

Hanover S

treet

Frederick Street

Castle S

treet

Princes Street

St Andrew’sBus Station

Waverley StationRSA Gallery

National Gallery

W Cros scauseway

Roxburgh St

Roxburgh Pl

Waterloo Place

Leith

Stre

et

Market StreetJeffrey Street

Cockburn Street

Bank S

tThe Meadows

Lady Lawson Street

to Western

General Hospital

New

Street

Mound Place

Waverley B

ridge

Labyrinth

Princes Street Gardens

A1 Regent Road

A90

0

Candlemaker Row

Loth

ian

Stre

et

Chambers Street

The Mound

Castle Esplanade

EdinburghCastle

Lawnmarket

Johnstone Terrace

Grassmarket

George IV B

ridge

Forrest Road

Lauriston Place

Heriot Place

Keir S

treet

Vic

toria

Street

A7 North B

ridge

City Chambers High Street (Royal Mile)

St Giles’Cathedral

The NationalLibrary of Scotland

Cowgate

Tron Kirk

South B

ridge

Bristo Place

Teviot Place

Potterrow

BristoSquare

Crichton Street

Pedestrian

access

Pedestrianunderpass

A7 Nicolson Street

Marshall St

W N

icolso

n St

Nicolson

Square

St Mary’s Street

Hill Place

Pleasance

Drummond Street

Canongate

Infirmary Street

Holyrood Road

Blackfriars S

treet

Cowgate

Richm

ond Pl

W R

ichm

ond S

t

St John Street

HolyroodCampus

St Leonard’s Street

E Crosscauseway

A7 Clerk Street

Buccleuch Place

Buccleuch S

treet

Hope Park Terrace

Rankeillor S

treet

Gifford Park

to Pollock

Halls

Melville Drive

George Square

Middle M

eadow W

alk

Meadow Lane

to the King’s Buildings

Cam

pus

King’s Stables Road

Chalm

ers Street

Lauriston Gardens

A700 Melville Drive

West Port

GreyfriarsKirk

GeorgeHeriot’s School

Surgeons’Hall

EdinburghCentral Mosque

FestivalTheatre

National Museumof Scotland

National PortraitGallery

Royal College of Physicians

Royal Societyof Edinburgh

The Balmoral Hotel

Quartermilecomplex

LauristonBuilding

Princes Street

George Street

Queen Street

St AndrewSquare

South S

t Andrew S

treet

South S

t David S

treet

Hanover S

treet

Frederick Street

Castle S

treet

Princes Street

St Andrew’sBus Station

Waverley Station

RSA Gallery

National Gallery

W Cros scauseway

Roxburgh St

Roxburgh Pl

Waterloo PlaceLeith

Stre

et

Market Street Jeffrey Street

Cockburn Street

Bank S

t

The Meadows

Lady Lawson Street

to Western

General Hospital

New

Street

Mound Place

Waverley B

ridge

Labyrinth

Princes Street Gardens

A1 Regent Road

A90

0

Candlemaker Row

Loth

ian

Stre

et

Chloroform52 Queen Street

Artificial RefrigerationRoyal College of Physicians

Structure and Synthesis of Vitamin CRoyal Society of Edinburgh

LactucariumThe Balmoral Hotel

Carbon DioxideNational Museum of Scotland

MorphineThe Old CollegeUniversity of Edinburgh

StrontiumGreyfriars Churchyard

Molecular Modelling The Old Medical SchoolTeviot Place

Carbon DioxiDe

national MuseuM of sCotlanD,

ChaMbers street, eh1 1Jf

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a naturally occurring compound and is the primary

source of carbon for life on Earth. It exists in the Earth’s atmosphere as a trace

gas at a concentration of 0.039 % by volume, but this concentration is rapidly

increasing with the burning of carbon-based fuels such as coal, oil and gas. An

increased level of CO2 in the atmosphere is contributing to the rate of global

warming and ocean acidification.

Joseph Black, Professor of Chemistry at the University of Edinburgh (1766 to

1796) discovered carbon dioxide gas in 1756. Black observed that the gas,

which he called ‘fixed air,’ was denser than air and supported neither flame nor

animal life.

➠At the National Museum of Scotland look for the Playfair Collection.

This collection includes the balance said to have been used by Black

in his quantitative experiments on alkalis, which led to the identification

of carbon dioxide.

strontiuM

Greyfriars ChurChyarD, eh1 2Qe

The brilliant flash of a crimson firework or the bright red flares that you see at

football matches are thanks to strontium-containing salts. The element strontium

is a soft, silvery metal that burns in air and reacts with water. It is the 15th most

abundant element on earth and is used for producing special glass for televisions

and producing ferrite magnets and refining zinc.

In 1793, Thomas Charles Hope announced the existence of a “hitherto unknown

earth.” This was the salt of a new element, later called strontium after the village

Strontian where the first strontium mineral, Strontianite, was found. Metallic

strontium was extracted in 1813 by electrolysis by Sir Humphry Davy.

➠The gravestone of Thomas Charles Hope can be seen in Greyfriars

Churchyard. As you enter look at the map on the right-hand side of the

kirk to find the location of his grave.

Morphine

the olD ColleGe,

university of eDinburGh, eh8 9yl

Morphine is widely used to relieve moderate to severe pain as in a class of

medications called opiate (narcotic) analgesics. It works by changing the way

the body senses pain. Morphine is a basic compound that reacts with acids to

form salts, and it is in salt form that morphine is most usually administered to

patients.

In 1831 William Gregory (1803-1858) published a process for isolating morphine

hydrochloride in a high state of purity. The importance of Gregory’s work became

clear in 1855 when the hypodermic injection was introduced into general

practice and pure morphine salts were essential for the technique. Demand and

production reached high levels in the second half of the nineteenth century and

alkaloid manufacture is still the principal activity of the pharmaceutical company

Macfarlan Smith Ltd, based in Edinburgh.

William Gregory’s laboratories at the University of Edinburgh were located in the

south-west corner of the Old College. The former chemistry laboratories were

converted in 1973 into the Talbot Rice Art Gallery.

➠As you enter the courtyard, you will find the gallery at the far left

hand corner.

MoleCular MoDellinG

the olD MeDiCal sChool, teviot plaCe,

eh8 9aG

Alexander Crum Brown (1838-1922) developed graphical formulae to represent

the structure of molecules, with atoms labelled as letters and bonds as lines. This

system is still used by chemists today. Crum Brown was a knitting enthusiast and by

using balls of wool and knitting needles he constructed a bonding model for sodium

chloride. This model, which was subsequently proved by x-rays to be correct, is on

display in the School of Chemistry’s museum at The King’s Buildings campus.

Professor Crum Brown taught chemistry at Teviot Place whilst he was Chair of

Chemistry and it is in fact his teachings in the late 1800s that are believed to have

influenced Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in his Sherlock Holmes stories.

➠Look for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s plaque on the left hand side of the

passage as you enter the courtyard of the Old Medical School at Teviot place.

ChloroforM

52 Queen street, eh2 3ns

Chloroform is an organic compound with formula CHCl3. Today several million

tonnes are produced annually as a precursor to PTFE (polytetrafluoroethlyene)

and refrigerants, although its use for refrigerants is being phased out.

It was in this very house, on the 4th of November, 1847, that James Young

Simpson and friends first inhaled chloroform after dinner, sending them

unconscious until the following morning! Within days James Young Simpson

who was an obstetrician, was administering it to his patients during childbirth.

The use of chloroform during surgery expanded across Europe and in the

1850s chloroform was used at the birth of Queen Victoria’s last two children.

At the beginning of the 20th century its use was abandoned due to the

discovery of chloroform’s toxicity, especially its tendency to cause fatal

cardiac arrhythmia.

➠Look for the plaque at the house.

artifiCial refriGeration

royal ColleGe of physiCians,

9 Queen street, eh2 1JQ

The first recorded instance of artificial refrigeration was unveiled by physicist

and chemist William Cullen (1710-1790) in the mid-18th century. Cullen

achieved the effect of refrigeration by boiling ethyl ether in a partial vacuum.

Although he gave demonstrations of his discovery, there was no proposal at

the time to commercialise his technique.

William Cullen was the president of the Royal College of Physicians of

Edinburgh in 1773 and also held the position of Chair of Chemistry at the

University of Edinburgh from 1756 until 1766. Since 1844, the Royal College

of Physicians of Edinburgh has been located at 9 Queen Street and adjacent

properties.

➠Look for the two snakes, associated with healing properties, on

either side of the door.

struCture anD synthesis

of vitaMin C

royal soCiety of eDinburGh,

22-24 GeorGe street, eh2 2pQ

Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, is a water-soluble vitamin. Unlike

most mammals, humans do not have the ability to make their own vitamin C.

We need to obtain it through our diet as severe vitamin C deficiency causes

the disease scurvy. Fortunately vitamin C can be found in a wide variety of fruit

and vegetables including oranges, strawberries, blackcurrants and broccoli.

In 1934, Edmund Hirst in partnership with Norman Haworth identified the

structure of vitamin C and synthesised it for the first time. In fact, this feat

represented the very first synthesis of any vitamin. Sir Edmund Hirst (1898

- 1975) was the first holder of the Forbes Chair of Organic Chemistry at

the University of Edinburgh and also the President of the Royal Society of

Edinburgh(RSE) from 1959 to 1964.

➠Whilst the photograph of Edmund Hirst in the President’s corridor

of the RSE is only available to view on request, see how many other

Scottish chemists you can recognise in the foyer

laCtuCariuM

balMoral hotel, eh2 2eQ

The location of a pharmaceutical firm, Duncan and Ogilvie, which was

established in 1820 is now occupied by The Balmoral Hotel. From 1836 the

firm manufactured lactucarium, a substitute for opium. Lactucarium occurs

naturally as the milky fluid secreted by several species of lettuce and was

used by the Ancient Egyptians. It is also known as ‘lettuce opium’ because of

its similar properties to opium.

➠Look for the plaque at the side of The Balmoral Hotel on

North Bridge that records the site of the premises. From 1847,

the firm was commissioned by Sir James Young Simpson to

manufacture chloroform, the first British firm to do so.

Edinburgh walking tour

ChEmistry trail

CHEMISTRY-map_brochure.indd 1 09/09/2013 11:55