A Tale Of Two Cities

An innovative new Scottish-led exhibition exploring the links between Edinburgh and other major cities opens. A Tale of Two Cities pairs the Scottish capital with other locations that have shared key periods of change over the centuries, and uses a combination of archival material and innovative technology to explain the stories of two cities.

Edinburgh’s first partner is the Chinese city of Nanjing, and visitors to Edinburgh Castle can now delve into the stories linking the two with an exhibition housed in the castle’s Royal Apartments from 9th December 2015 – 14th February 2016.

Following the success of the exhibition in China, where it was seen by over 1 million visitors at the newly opened Nanjing Museum, it was also announced that the exhibition’s new partner for 2016 will be the Portuguese capital of Lisbon.

Co-curated by new public heritage body, Historic Environment Scotland, the exhibition takes visitors on an interactive journey showing how cities develop over time. Using archival material and digital touch tables, the exhibition spans the centuries. Visitors are able to chart Edinburgh’s development from when Arthur’s Seat was an active volcano, through the creation of the Old and New towns, right up to the present day. Visitors can also explore parallel development in Edinburgh’s partner cities using an interactive exhibit which strips back the layers of urban history.

This exhibition is included in the cost of admission to the castle.