The year is 1645. The most virulent strain of the bubonic plague - the "Black Death" - has immobilized Edinburgh, Scotland, claiming the lives of more than half the city’s population. The area hardest hit: Mary King’s Close off High Street, a lively, busy thoroughfare of pubs, shops, and residences. Cries of suffering have replaced the friendly chatter, and the stench of death the aroma of tea and scones.

The place, the time, the horror have been resurrected as one of Edinburgh's most unusual attractions. Archaeologically and historically accurate, the alleys you walk upon, the rooms you visit, the stories you hear are real. This is not a re-creation; it is a resurrection of what already existed so many centuries ago.

Read all about it in Fyllis Hockman's post here.