The Tontine Hotel

Wikipedia says about 'a tontine' that "The basic concept is simple. Each investor pays a sum into the tontine. The funds are invested and each investor receives dividends. As each investor dies, his or her share is divided amongst the surviving investors. This process continues until only one investor survives. Originally, the last surviving subscriber received only the dividends: the capital reverted to the state upon his or her death and was used to fund public works projects, which often contained the word "tontine" in their name. In a later variation, the capital would devolve upon the last survivor, effectively dissolving the trust and usually making the survivor very wealthy....."

The Tontine Hotel, on the High Street, was originally built by Napoeonic prisoners of war in 1807/8, as a private club for a group of hunters who sold shares in the ownership of the building. Additions to the building were made as time went by. I don't know who became the outright owner, but it has been serving its guests for 200 years now. Its famous Adam Room at the rear of the hotel overlooks Tweed and the surrounding countryside. You can see its huge bow window in yesterday's picture. It is set back from the High Street behind a cobbled forecourt.