The Hidden City Beneath the Royal Mile

Mary King's Close, Edinburgh Old Town, Scotland

An entire medieval street was sealed beneath the Royal Mile during the plague. Its residents, some say, never truly left.

In the 17th century, a devastating outbreak of bubonic plague struck Edinburgh's Old Town. The narrow closes — alleyways — running off the Royal Mile were bricked shut with the infected still inside. Over the following centuries, new buildings were simply constructed on top, entombing the medieval streets below. Mary King's Close is the most infamous of these. When it was rediscovered and partially excavated, investigators found rooms still containing furniture, personal effects, and in one small chamber — a collection of tiny dolls and toys arranged in a circle on the floor. A Japanese psychic named Aiko Gibo visited in the 1990s and claimed to sense the spirit of a young girl named Annie who had been separated from her doll during the plague sealing. Gibo left her own doll as an offering. The room, now called Annie's Room, has since accumulated hundreds of dolls left by visitors — none of whom were asked to bring them. Guides have reported that the dolls move between visits. Temperature readings in certain corridors drop by 8–10 degrees regardless of external conditions. One researcher spent a night alone in the close and left before morning, refusing to discuss what occurred.