About this artwork
The Tolbooth is the oldest building in Edinburgh's Canongate. It was built in 1591, in the French Style, and at five-storeys high, was intended as an administrative centre with a gaol at the bottom and the Council Chambers and law court above. The clock was added on in 1884. Today the premises are occupied by the People's Story Museum. James Valentine's company mainly published picturesque views of town and country but it also included images of historic city buildings in its repertoire.
Updated before 2020
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artist:James ValentineScottish (1815 - 1879)
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title:Tolbooth and Canongate, Edinburgh
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date created:Unknown
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materials:Albumen print
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measurements:28.9 x 19.1 cm (paper: 31.9 x 22.4 cm)
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object type:
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credit line:Gift of Mrs. Riddell in memory of Peter Fletcher Riddell 1985
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accession number:PGP R 644
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gallery:
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subject:
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artwork photographed by:Antonia Reeve
James Valentine
James Valentine
The Valentine company was founded in Dundee by James's father, John Valentine, in 1825. After learning the daguerreotype process in Paris in the late 1840s, James added portrait photography to the family business in 1851. By the 1860s the company had begun to cater for the growing tourist industry...
