Edinburgh Wax Museum facts for kids

Edinburgh Wax Museum, New Assembly Close, Edinburgh

The Edinburgh Wax Museum was a popular place for tourists in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was open for a short time in the late 1900s. At its busiest, about 230,000 people visited each year. This made it one of the most important attractions in the city.

It was the only wax museum in Scotland. It showed over 150 wax figures of famous Scottish heroes and other well-known people.

History of the Museum

In 1976, a clever businessman named Charles Cameron bought a beautiful old building. It was on New Assembly Close, near the Royal Mile in Edinburgh. This building was first built in 1813 as a bank. It was designed by James Gillespie Graham.

The building was one of the few to survive the Great Fire of Edinburgh in 1824. This fire destroyed many buildings around it. At night, the museum also hosted the Castle Dracula Theatre. Charles Cameron himself played Count Dracula in this spooky show. An architect named John Carlyle Hope helped change the building for the museum.

A talented artist named Winifred Mills created the wax faces. The museum also had a special area for children called Never Never Land.

The Edinburgh Wax Museum closed its doors in March 1989. The building then became offices for lawyers.

Many of the wax figures were bought by a company. Some of them later appeared in a smaller wax museum on a farm. Others went to the Whisky Heritage Museum.

Since 2008, there have been ideas to open the museum again. Today, the building is called the Lord Reid Building. It is part of the Faculty of Advocates.

What You Could See: Exhibits

The museum had many interesting wax figures and scenes. Here are some of the things visitors could see:

Famous Wax Figures

The museum featured many important people from history and famous Scots. These included:

• William Wallace, a Scottish knight and hero.
• Robert the Bruce, a King of Scots.
• Mary Queen of Scots, a famous Scottish queen.
• Robert Burns, a well-known Scottish poet.
• Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.
• Sir Walter Scott, a famous Scottish writer.
• Adam Smith, a Scottish economist.
• James Watt, who improved the steam engine.
• Alexander Graham Bell, who invented the telephone.
• Arthur Conan Doyle, who created Sherlock Holmes.
• Scottish entertainers like Billy Connolly and Sean Connery.

Exciting Wax Scenes

The museum also had detailed scenes that showed important moments in history. These included:

• The Massacre of Glencoe, a sad event in Scottish history.
• The Execution of Mary Queen of Scots.
• The Battle of Culloden, a key battle in Scottish history.
• Bonnie Prince Charlie escaping while dressed as Flora Macdonald's maid.
• David Livingstone meeting H. M. Stanley in Africa.
• Queen Victoria with her servant, John Brown.

Fun Fictional Characters

The museum also brought beloved storybook characters to life. These were especially popular with younger visitors:

• Humpty Dumpty and Little Red Riding Hood.
• Hansel and Gretel.
• Characters from Alice in Wonderland, like Alice and the Cheshire Cat.
• Figures from Peter Pan, including Peter Pan and Captain Hook.
• Peter Rabbit from the famous children's books.

Later Additions

Over time, new figures were added to the museum, including:

• E.T. from the popular movie.
• Mr. Spock from Star Trek.
• Prince Charles and Lady Diana.