Pillars, Middle Meadow Walk, Edinburgh

The gatepiers at Middle Meadow Walk in Edinburgh were designed by George Smith in 1848. They are a pair of tall, octagonal commemorative structures that mark the northern entrance to the walk. Each gatepier features a plain octagonal plinth topped with slender shouldered panels and a corniced smooth capital. The capitals are adorned with paired rampant unicorns, each holding gilded lances. The eastern unicorn is decorated with Edinburgh's coat of arms and the motto "nemo me impune lacessit," while the western unicorn displays a rampant lion and the motto "nisi dominus frustra." The gatepiers are constructed from smooth ashlar stone.