44

Adam Smith’s Grave

Grave of the economics philosopher
Adam Smith, 1723-1790

Here lies Adam Smith, father of modern economics and author of The Wealth of Nations, one of the most influential books ever written. For his last fourteen years, Smith lived round the corner in Panmure House and worked up the hill at Customs House in the City Chambers.

It was in Edinburgh that Adam Smith first made his reputation and met one of his philosophical heroes, David Hume whose writings he had been punished for reading at Oxford. Together they would become part of an Edinburgh intellectual circle that revolutionised the world’s thinking.

Elsewhere in the graveyard lie many of their colleagues: philosopher Dugald Stewart; founder of the New Town George Drummond; botanist Charles Alston; judge William Craig, novelist Mary Balfour, and two people who were great inspirations to the poet Robert Burns: the poet Robert Fergusson, who died tragically young at 24, and Agnes Maclehose, aka ’Clarinda’, for whom Burns wrote Ae Fond Kiss.

Discover more objects at Edinburgh.org/101

Visit Scotland | Alba

#edinburgh101

EDINBURGHS
101 OBJECTS

The plaque is found on the grave of Adam Smith (1723-1790), the Scottish economist and philosopher who is considered the father of modern economics, the father of capitalism, and the author of the idea of ​​the "invisible hand" (the selfish actions of individuals, in the aggregate, affect the community). His book "The Wealth of Nations" ("An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations") is the basis of classical economics.
From 1778 Smith lived in Edinburgh. The grave is in the Canongate Kirkyard

On the tomb structure, photographed on the same day by the same photographer, the following text appears:
Here
ARE DEPOSITED THE REMAINS OF
ADAM SMITH.
AUTHOR OF THE
THEORY OF MORAL SENTIMENTS.
AND
WEALTH OF NATIONS;

HE WAS BORN, 5th JUNE, 1723.
AND HE DIED, 17th JULY, 1790.
Click for a larger image Click for a larger image
(The text in the left panel is not readable)