The Camera Obscura lies on Kirrie Hill, overlooking Kirriemuir and the valley of Strathmore. Both the camera, and the cricket pavilion in which it sits, were donated in 1930 by the author J.M Barrie (1868 - 1937) to his home town. A camera obscura focusses the image of an external view onto a flat surface within a darkened room. The image is sufficiently large so it can be drawn or observed by a group of people. This device uses a 17.8cm (7 inch) lens, with a focal length of 2.67m (105 inches), to project onto a 1.37m (54 inch) concave table within an octagonal room.
In 1999, the facility was reopened after refurbishment, which followed years of neglect. Today, it is looked after by Kirriemuir Community Council and is one of only three cameras obscura in Scotland, the others being in Edinburgh and Dumfries.
