Newmonthill Cemetery

Explorer Tom The Meffan in Forfar has built an entire cobbled street indoors, and that is your warning that this museum refuses to settle for labels on shelves. Wander the old Vennel past a sweet shop, a clockmaker and working trades, then try to decide whether the town was louder with hammers, gossip or somebody asking for another bridie. Miss Jane Meffan funded the museum in memory of her father William, a former provost, and it opened in 1898. Its collections take you much farther back: Pictish carved stones, archaeology and the Goosecroft log boat, dated to about 1090, give Forfar a long memory. Displays also face the town's witch trials, a grim chapter that deserves clear attention rather than a spooky wink. Upstairs, changing art exhibitions give living makers space beside all that history. The reconstructed street is good fun, but do not miss the detail in the stones. They were cut by people whose names are gone, yet whose marks still make you stop and look closely. A museum that can carry a medieval boat, an old baker's shop and a modern painting in one visit is earning its keep. Admission is free, and the building has a lift to the upper galleries. It stands at 20 West High Street in the centre of Forfar. From April to October it opens Wednesday to Monday; in winter, Friday to Monday. Check current hours and any changing exhibition before setting out. If the fake street sends you out in search of a real Forfar bridie, the Meffan has done its job rather well.