The new quarter has been created in around the Green area of the city by Aberdeen City Council (ACC) along with a consortium of local businesses to encourage more people back into the neighbourhood.

It is hoped the Merchant Quarter will redefine the area as a "cosmopolitan destination" for a number of activities as part of efforts to improve the city's tourism offer, including food, drink and lifestyle provision.

Merchant Quarter will also encompass part of the Green - an area which is benefiting from a £2.8m Townscape Heritage Initiative involving ACC, the Heritage Lottery Fund, Historic Scotland and Scottish Enterprise.

Jonathan Day, chair of the Merchant Quarter Association, said: "European cities that have invested in high quality visitor experiences in their cultural quarters have been rewarded with a huge influx of tourists, a fillip in local civic pride and a surge in investment.

"The Merchant Quarter can do this for Aberdeen without any significant cost. It's an intellectual rather than financial investment where imagination and collaboration come together to rebrand and reposition what is already there."

Image: The Green, which is being revamped through the £2.8m Townscape Heritage Initiative, forms part of the Merchant Quarter venture.