A calling card case made out of the skin of notorious Edinburgh “bodysnatcher” William Burke is on permanent display at The Cadies & Witchery Tours shop at 84 West Bow (Victoria Street). 

Burke and Hare committed a number of murders in Edinburgh in 1828, and then sold the corpses to Dr. Robert Knox at the Edinburgh Medical School for use in his dissection classes. After his public execution in January 1829, Burke was publicly dissected (like his victims) and grisly souvenirs were made from skin taken from various parts of his body.

The calling card case, made from skin taken from the back of William Burke’s left hand, was sold at auction for £1050 in 1988, to Robin Mitchell of The Cadies & Witchery Tours, by the family of Piercy Hughes, a descendent of one of the surgeons involved in the dissection.

In 1997, the calling card case was sent to London to feature in the Welcome Trust’s exhibition Dr Death – Medicine at the End of Life. It also featured on Channel 4’s Four Rooms and the BBC’s Antiques Roadshow where it was described as “priceless”. 

The Calling Card Case can be viewed during shop hours. To find out more about The Cadies & Witchery Tours shop please click here.

Want to discover more history from the area? Visit our History pages here.