Mary King's Close is a historic close located under the Edinburgh City Chambers building on the Royal Mile, in the historic Old Town area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It took its name from one Mary King, a merchant burgess who resided on the Close in the 17th century. The close was partially demolished and buried due to the building of the Royal Exchange in the year 1753, and later closed to the public for many years. The area became shrouded in myths and urban legends; tales of hauntings and murders abounded. In 1897, Andrew Chesney, the last resident remaining in Mary King's close, was given a compulsory purchase order for £400 and he left the close in 1902. The close is currently operated as a tourist attraction by Continuum Attractions.

Hauntings

Mary King's Close has had a reputation for hauntings since at least the 17th century, with several paranormal investigations taking place. It has been pointed out that this particular Close ran the nearest of any to the old Nor Loch, a stagnant and highly polluted marsh; biogas escaping into the close and creating eerie lights may have been the cause for these rumours of spirit hauntings. It is also said that the gas escaping into the closes was known to cause hallucinations.

References in literature

Mary King's Close is the setting for the teen fiction novel Crow Boy written by Philip Caveney and published by Scottish-based publisher Fledgling Press in November 2012. Mary King's Close is a location in Teen Fiction Novel City of Ghosts by V.E. Schwab published by Scholastic on 6 September 2018. It is a location in Mortal Causes by Ian Rankin where a body is found. The Duke of Johannesburg and a friend, when they are evading the Marchmont Herald who knows the duke's title is false, use it as a hiding place in The Revolving Door Of Life by Alexander McCall Smith