Greyfriars Bobby

Few have failed to be captivated by the story of the small Skye terrier, who, bereft at losing his master, sat by his grave in Greyfriar’s Kirkyard until he eventually was buried in the churchyard himself a few years later.

The statue of Bobby is a local attraction, having originally been installed as a water fountain. Either a Skye terrier or Dandie Dinmont, Bobby lived between around 1855 and 1872. His master, a Mr John Gray, was a night watchman for the local police and took Bobby on for company during his lonely shifts. The pair were inseparable, and Bobby would accompany his master for a meal each day at a nearby eatery and continued to be fed by the owners after his master’s death.

Despite the short time Bobby and John spent together, as John died within a few years of getting Bobby, Bobby sat by John’s grave and became rather famous during his own lifetime.

An English philanthropist, charmed by the story of the loyal little dog, commissioned the memorial statue of him by William Brodie we see today at the top of Candlemaker Row. Bobby’s grave can be found at the very entrance to Greyfriars Kirkyard not far from his master, John Gray’s.

Bobby’s collar and drinking bowl are on display in the nearby Museum of Scotland.