Arthur's Seat, Extinct volcano summit in Holyrood Park, Edinburgh, Scotland

Arthur's Seat is an extinct volcanic cone within Holyrood Park, rising 251 meters above the city of Edinburgh. The slopes reveal open grassland, rocky crags, and narrow paths that wind toward the summit.

The volcanic formation emerged during the early Carboniferous period around 340 million years ago and then went extinct forever. Glaciers later shaped the slopes during ice ages and left the landscape seen today.

The name's origin is uncertain: a 1508 record calls it Arthurissete, and writers later proposed Gaelic roots such as Àrd-na-Said, "height of arrows". In 1840 the hill was used to dedicate Scotland for the preaching of the gospel, and apostle Orson Pratt climbed it in 1850 to pray for converts.

Several marked paths lead upward from Holyrood Palace, with the eastern route past Dunsapie Loch offering the gentlest climb. Sturdy footwear is advisable since many sections can become slippery and the ground is sometimes uneven.

In 1836, five boys discovered in a hillside cave 17 tiny coffins with carved wooden figures inside them. To this day, nobody knows who placed them there or why they were made.