image copyright Rachel Windsor

The Playfair Monument is dedicated to John Playfair and was designed by his nephew, William H Playfair, the famous Edinburgh neo-classical architect. The monument was suggested by the Royal Society of Edinburgh, and a site near to the Royal Observatory was chosen. John Playfair had been Professor of Natural Philosophy at Edinburgh University from 1805 and also President of the Astronomical Institution working from the Observatory on Calton Hill. The monument was proposed in 1820, and was completed in 1826.