Scott by name, Scot by nature

After Sir Walter Scott's death in 1832, a competition was held to design a suitable monument for the phenomenally popular Scottish writer who helped revive interest, both north and south of the border, in Scottish culture - which had been suppressed in the wake of the failed Jacobite rebellion. Self taught architect George Meikle Kemp won the competition under a pseudoname, thus was given the contract in 1838 to build the monument we see standing in Princes Street Gardens to this day. Built of sandstone, the monument has over time absorbed a lot of pollution so looks very black now, compared to how it would have looked on completion in 1844 (sadly by which time its designer had died by accidental drowning in the Union Canal).
Housed in the space between the monument's supporting legs is the white marble statue of Scott shown in my blip today. Designed by John Steell, Scott is depicted sitting down, holding a quill pen and paper, with his dog Maida.