Mercat Cross, Scott Crescent

Dated 1695; restored in 1887 and 1987 · Junction of Scott Crescent and Elm Row · Category C, HES reference LB31972

Dated 1695 and twice substantially restored, the Mercat Cross is one of the clearest surviving links between present-day Galashiels and the civic life of the old burgh.

Last reviewed: 17 July 2026

Quick Facts

Why It Matters

The cross is modest in scale but unusually rich in meaning. It recalls the legal and commercial identity of the burgh, marks the historic centre of the old settlement and remains part of Galashiels’ civic ceremonies. Its survival is especially valuable because much of the surrounding old town was removed during twentieth-century redevelopment.

The Story

Mercat crosses were public symbols of a burgh’s trading privileges and authority. They were places where proclamations could be made and where civic business became visible in the street. Galashiels’ cross therefore belongs to the history of the town as a community with its own public identity, not simply to the history of decorative stonework.

The surviving monument bears the date 1695. HES describes an octagonal red-sandstone shaft, a sundial and ball finial, and a wrought-iron flag carrying the same date. The present appearance is not wholly seventeenth-century. The cross was re-erected on a stepped base in 1887, and further stone replacement took place in 1987. Part of the earlier shaft is now preserved at Old Gala House. These changes should be stated openly: they do not diminish the cross’s importance, but they mean it is best understood as a historic monument renewed by successive generations.

Its position is also significant. The cross stands beside the remnants of the old civic core, near Old Gala House and the Old Cloth Hall, and close to the site of the tolbooth demolished in 1880. This was once a much denser historic environment. The survival of the cross helps visitors recover the older pattern of Galashiels beneath the present roads and later development.

The bronze plaques added in the 1930s are attributed by HES to George Hope Tait. They connect the monument with the modern Braw Lads’ tradition and with the ceremony recalling the 1503 sasine associated with the marriage of James IV and Margaret Tudor. The cross is therefore both an old object and an active setting for civic memory.

Things to Notice

• The octagonal form of the shaft.
• The sundial beneath the spherical finial.
• The dated wrought-iron flag.
• The contrast between the historic upper work and the later stepped base.
• The bronze plaques added during the twentieth century.
• The relationship to Old Gala House, the Old Cloth Hall and the vanished tolbooth site.

Timeline

• 1695: Date carried by the cross.
• 1887: Re-erected and restored on a stepped base.
• 1930s: Bronze commemorative plaques added by George Hope Tait.
• 1987: Further restoration and stone replacement; part of the earlier shaft preserved at Old Gala House.
• Today: Continues as a civic landmark and ceremonial focus.

Significance Scores

Scores follow the Heritage Directory’s published significance-scoring methodology. They are interpretive judgements, not statutory designations.

Notes and Uncertainties

The date 1695 is carried by the monument, but the present cross also embodies major restoration and re-erection in 1887 and further stone replacement in 1987. The 1503 sasine is commemorated here by a later civic ceremony; the present cross did not exist in 1503.

Image and Licence Notes

The principal photograph was taken by Jim Barton and is reused from Wikimedia Commons under the CC BY-SA 2.0 licence. Follow the image link for the original file, full attribution and reuse terms.

Related Places

• Old Gala House
• Old Cloth Hall
• Gala Aisle and Old Churchyard

Sources

• Historic Environment Scotland, LB31972: Scott Crescent, Mercat Cross
• Trove/NRHE place record 54350: Galashiels, Scott Crescent, Market Cross
• RCAHMS, An Inventory of the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Selkirkshire (1957), p. 67, no. 55, as cited by the NRHE record.