‘Despicable’ graffiti left for two years

Published on Tuesday 1 November 2011 12:08

GRAFFITI has been left scrawled across a tomb wall in one of the city’s most historic graveyards – for more than two years.

The section of the Old Calton Cemetery on Waterloo Place appears to have been defaced in May 2009, with the words “Psychos Leaving Day” (sic), the names Joey, Lauren and Andrew and “Naomi loves Andrew” still visible.

City council chiefs have now pledged to remove the “despicable vandalism” as soon as possible after being alerted by the Evening News, with calls today for more regular inspections in the future.

It comes amid plans by Edinburgh World Heritage and the World Monuments Fund to promote the cemetery as a tourist attraction.

Old Calton Cemetery, along with New Calton Cemetery and St Cuthbert’s Cemetery, were added to World Monuments Fund Watch List in October 2009. Plans are being developed to set up a trust to prevent further decay and vandalism to the historic sites.

Conservative Councillor Cameron Rose said: “I think there is a need for upgrading the council’s removal procedures, but it is difficult for us to keep up with them all. It’s certainly a shame that this graffiti is still there after all this time.

“Graffiting is a very significant problem and affects community morale – we need to be more vigilant in removing graffiti in a number of areas.”

The burial ground was opened in 1718 and is the resting place of famed Edinburgh residents, including philosopher David Hume, publisher William Blackwood and clergyman Dr Robert Candlish.

The cemetery and its monuments are protected as category-A listed buildings.

Graham Birse, deputy chief executive of the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, said: “Graffiti that’s two years old and has not been shifted is something that needs to be addressed pretty quickly.

“Edinburgh’s built heritage and its historic centre is very much part of the offer that we extend to visitors and also to potential investors, because they reflect the quality of life and the way we have looked after ourselves.”

Mr Birse added that visiting graveyards appears to have become more popular with the arrival of genealogy TV shows, such as the BBC’s Who Do You Think You Are?

Craig Ellery, publications chairman at the Scottish Genealogy Society, which published a book of inscriptions from the Old Calton Burial Ground, said: “This is really no different to somebody walking into Register House and ripping something up. The people responsible for this are simply ruining valuable headstones.”

Councillor Robert Aldridge, environment leader for the city council, said: “Graffiti in graveyards is nothing less than mindless vandalism and to deface someone’s tomb in this way is just despicable.

“We are grateful to the member of the public who spotted this vandalism in Old Calton burial ground and will ensure it is removed as soon as possible.”

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Jools in Edinburgh

Tuesday, November 1, 2011 at 10:23 PM

Surely jobs like this are ideal for offenders on community service orders to be doing. Also, why not get the residents of Saughton to have day trips out to clean up stuff like this rather than languishing at the taxpayers expense to the tune of 20k a year?

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girlfriday

Tuesday, November 1, 2011 at 05:08 PM

i would like to voice my concerns about mount vernon cemetery, having seen the burnt out state and watching the elderly struggling to clean their loved ones graves - do people not realise how disgusting vandalising a cemetery really is and why cant community service or the council not show some basic human sense of decency and rebuild instead of the eyesore that mount vernon has become - surely there is a solution rather than just leaving it as it is we should respect the dead

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Logie88

Tuesday, November 1, 2011 at 02:06 PM

The people who should know better who salivate over the works of Banksy and the like are ultimately responsible for this kind of vandalism, as they give legitimacy to every idiot with a spray can.

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jdships

Tuesday, November 1, 2011 at 12:44 PM

Virtually every graveyard in the City suffers from some form of vandalism . This causes great distress to relatives of those buried there Perhaps EEN could highlight this and just perhaps the Council will " ensure it is removed as soon as possible.”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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