Many Leithers were in high spirits on Thursday afternoon as a very familiar "honest, sonsie face" returned just in time for Burns Night.
Ahead of an official veiling planned to take place next week, Leith's Robert Burns statue was spotted being craned back into its rightful spot at the junction with Constitution Street.
The 200-year-old statue had been kept in storage since December 2019 after being shifted to make way for construction works related to the Trams to Newhaven project.
With works on the Constitution Street stretch of the new tram line nearing completion, the famous statue was able to be return - and just in time for Burns Night next Tuesday.
Scaffolding will remain around the statue and plinth for the next few days, while workers secure them in place.
A spokesperson for the City of Edinburgh Council confirmed that a special unveiling of the local landmark will take place ahead of Burns Night.
Commenting on the statue's return, Councillor Lesley Macinnes, Transport and Environment Convener, said: “It’s wonderful to see the Burns statue back in its rightful place, and I know many locals will have got a sneak peek of it being lowered into position before it was wrapped up, ahead of its official unveiling on Burns Night.
“This marks a key moment in the Trams to Newhaven project, and I’m looking forward to seeing further progress along the route in the coming months.”
In January 2020 it was revealed that archaeologists working at the site of the plinth of the statue had uncovered a 19th century time capsule that had lain hidden underneath.
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The time capsule, which had been fixed to the base of the statue, contained contemporary artefacts, including a newspaper, a pamphlet on the history of the Robert Burns Club, a list of crimes recorded by the Leith Police, and newly-minted silver and gold coins.
Some of the newspapers the team discovered dated from 1961 - an indication of a previous time the statue was moved.
The statue was erected by the Leith Burns Club in 1898. On each side of the pedestal is a panel based on Burns' poems, with The Cottar's Saturday Night, Hallowe'en, Death and Dr Hornbrook and The Smiddy all featured.
