the (mysterious) streets of Edinburgh!

This will be old news for some of you but I was charmed when I found it the other day!


Here's an intro that was in the Scotsman ... (note the brown text comment ... commentor's name!)

Dragon flies in as serial paper folder strikes again

Published Date: 
11 July 2011

By David McCann

THE mystery of who has been delivering hand-crafted artworks to the city's cultural hotspots has deepened after an intricate model of a nesting dragon was found in the Scottish Storytelling Centre.

• Antony Buchanan investigates the new arrival.

The dragon, carved from the pages of Ian Rankin's novel Knots and Crosses, is the fourth origami-style sculpture to have been left anonymously in the Capital - all of which have some link to the Rebus author.

Mr Rankin previously said he was mystified by their origin.

A tag found alongside the paper sculpture reads: "A gift in support of libraries, books, words and ideas...", followed by the message: "Once upon a time there was a book, and in the book was a nest, and in the nest was an egg, and in the egg was a dragon, and in the dragon was a story."

A member of staff found the model perched on a windowsill in a room dedicated to Robert Louis Stevenson.

The Evening News reported last month how The Filmhouse Cinema, the National Library of Scotland and the Scottish Poetry Library had all stumbled upon fine mini-artworks fashioned from the pages of books.

Donald Smith, director of the Scottish Storytelling Centre, said: "It's a teaser and is beautifully made out of really simple materials. It's basically paper.

"It appeared about ten days ago. People were coming in and saying: 'Have you seen the dragon?' and that was the start of it. The first time we saw it we thought 'Should we be moving that somewhere safer?' because we have so many families and kids that come in and it was so delicate. But we thought, 'No, it's been made to go there'. It fits perfectly, tucked away in a recess as if you are supposed to happen upon it. "

Mr Smith said that as well as the dragon being created from a Rankin novel, there were historical connections between the crime writer and the centre.

"Ian Rankin's first job was collecting folk tales for an archiving project in London," he said. "And he's got a real interest in traditional stories and often drops by here."

The centre director added that staff were now devouring Rankin's Knots and Crosses in a bid to solve the mystery.

However... the blog post where I found this story was here at Central Stn.

PLease note that below I have posted a small number of the images and info found on this posting. Read the full story... well worth your time ... note the author is Chrisdonia!

Mince Pie Abendmahl,

Jesus 13/07/2011 13:07:34

Your dragon this story out are you not?

Next to the 'poetree' sat a paper egg lined with gold and a scatter of words which, when put together, make "A Trace of Wings" by Edwin Morgan.

Nobody knew where it came from, nor was anyone forthcoming with information in person or online, despite a fair amount of local news coverage.

It looked like this was a one-off, a beautiful and delicate piece of art created by a fan of the Poetry Library. Until, in late June, the National Library of Scotland found themselves the recipient of a similar piece.

A gramophone and a coffin, sculpted from a copy of Ian Rankin's Exit Music, and again deposited anonymously. The tag in this case read:

For @natlibscot - A gift in support of libraries, books, words, ideas..... (& against their exit)

UPDATE 24/08/11: Two more appeared today at the Edinburgh International Book Festival!

One, addressed to @edbookfest (the Book Festival), was left on one of the signing tables in the Bookshop.

The tag on this reads:

To @edbookfest 'A gift' This is for you in support of libraries, books, words, ideas...... & festivals xx

It includes a teabag filled with cut out letters, on the tag of which are the words "by leaves we live". The cup on the top has a swirl of words which read " Nothing beats a nice cup of tea (or coffee) and a really good BOOK", and on the 'tray' next to the cupcake it says "except maybe a cake as well".

The other, addressed to @edincityoflit (UNESCO Edinburgh City of Literature), was secreted about their stand in the entrance tent.

To @edincityoflit 'A gift' LOST (albeit in a good book) This is for you in support of libraries, books, words, ideas.... "No infant has the power of deciding..... by what circumstances (they) shall be surrounded.. Robert Owen

Intriguingly, this is crafted from a copy of The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinnerby James Hogg.

The tag reads:

This book is not only a favourite of the City of Literature team but is also known to have been an influence on Ian Rankin's work. So far quite a few of these sculptures have overt links to Mr Rankin, suggesting this is no coincidence. As Ian was due on site later in the day and had not yet met any of these creations face to face, the @EdinCityofLit team introduced him to their new baby.

This detailed posting was put together by chrisdonia....  at the Central Stn network. It looks like an excellent online community / noticeboard and such.

About Central Station

Central Station is a creative social network.

If you make work, Central Station is a community where you can talk to peers and showcase yourself. It's also a place where you can find opportunities. If you're interested in creative talent, you can use Central Station to spot people you might want to commission or just keep track of. And regardless of who you are, it's a space where you can browse and be entertained by a huge and ever-growing pool of creative work.

Members are part of an online community. You can get involved and post your own events and opportunities. Discover hidden gems in the collections part of the site and build your own gallery of work you like. If you make work, you have your own portfolio area including unique web address.

We've made Central Station for creative people who are looking for a place to talk to peers, share work and resources, access information and profile themselves. It's also for people who are interested in the arts, film and design generally - a new way to engage with a broad cross-section of creative work and debate.

We're aiming to broaden, deepen and widen engagement with contemporary art, film and design. We're encouraging creative people to use online technology and share their work with each other and new audiences.

Hopefully Central Station encourages cross-discipline, collaborative practice. We're giving you the space to discuss process, share resources and, if relevant, profile what you're making in a safe and easy-to-use environment.

Central Station is made by digital studio ISO and is funded by Creative Scotland.

I'd love the see something similar to this happening where I live!

Love a good mystery!