Edinburgh Zoo: 12 retro photos of Edinburgh Zoo throughout the years to celebrate its 119th birthday

Can you believe the Edinburgh Zoo was officially opened 119 years ago today?

With pandas, giraffes and the famous penguin parade, Edinburgh Zoo has long been one of Edinburgh most famous attractions, with locals and tourists from all over the world flocking to see the world famous zoo.

Modelled on Hamburg’s Tierpark Hagenbeck Zoo in Germany, it has housed some of the world’s most loved animals over its history, with three king penguins arriving in 1914, supplied by the Christian Salvesen whaling expedition which docked in Leith.

In more recent times, it has grown to a family of sloths, five male Baringo giraffes, a baby red panda and three endangered Przewalski's horses – all of which have proven huge pulls to visitors.

And on today, its 119 year anniversary, there’s no better way to look over the history of the Edinburgh Zoo than the following 12 photos of it throughout its history.

Edinburgh Zoo's penguin parade reimagined in new giraffe sculpture 20 pictures of the stars attending the Edinburgh International Film Festival 14 pictures from the 1960s and 1970s of Scotland experiencing heatwaves