Discovery in Roslin Glen

On August 24th we went for a family day hike in Roslin Glen. This is the site of Rosslyn Chapel - the church made famous through its feature in the Da Vinci Code book and location in the Da Vinci Code movie. We did not go to see the chapel, but to take a hike in the Glen. During this journey Phil stumbled upon a piece of history. As we were walking he caught a glint of something hidden beneath the muddy trail. After a bit of digging Phil unearthed what looked to be a very old bottle. It was under the earth upsidedown with a bit of liquid left so the rubber on the stone screw stopper was still supple. It was quite a wet and muddy walk and we ended up getting (or at least feeling) quite lost as their were no signs along the trail to help guide our way. We eventually decided to cut through a farmers field and found our way back to the main town - not as lost as we thought.

On return home and after searching the internet and with the help of some local historians, Phil found out his bottle was likely at least 100 years old. It was from an old soda maker William Smith from Milton Bridge. Phil even got the help of Robin Barr, the CEO of the Barr soft drink company, makers of Irn Bru - a popular soft drink in Scotland. The Barr company bought Globe Soda that had acquired the Smith company some years before. Mr. Barr was able to provide Phil with an approximate dating of his bottle.