The Magdalen Chapel, Edinburgh

The Magdalen Chapel is a chapel on Cowgate in Edinburgh’s Old Town, built in the 16th century and now a Category A listed building. Its foundation joined worship with welfare: Michael MacQueen’s bequest, enlarged by his widow Jonet Rynd, paid for a chaplain and accommodation for seven poor men. Look at the doorway inscription, which links generosity to divine repayment.

The chapel also preserves a remarkable window: its central south opening contains the Royal Arms of Scotland and the Arms of Mary of Guise, and it is Scotland’s only intact pre-Reformation stained-glass window. A table inside was used to prepare the bodies of executed Covenanters for burial, while a sword is traditionally connected with Captain John Paton. Restoration in 1992/93 preceded its present use as the Scottish Reformation Society’s headquarters.