Heart of Midlothian Mosaic

The Heart of Midlothian is a mosaic of red granite set into the pavement near the west door of Saint Giles Cathedral. It marks the site of the Old Tolbooth, the city’s medieval administrative hub, prison, and place of public execution. In the nineteenth century, prisoners waiting for transport to the gallows would spit on the cobbles covering the site as a gesture of contempt. Today, passersby spit on the mosaic for luck, leaving a permanent slick on the stone.