Magnificent, mysterious, ornately carved building .
Disadvantages:
Very busy, due to recent publicity, not the best disabled access
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
If I had been writing this review 10 years ago few people would have heard of Rosslyn Chapel, but now thanks to Dan Brown, this 15th century Scottish chapel has found worldwide fame and this has been reflected in vastly increased visitor numbers. This year Rosslyn Chapel expects to receive 100,000 visitors compared with 65,000 last year and 6,000 a decade ago. Although to immediately disappoint Brown fans there is not a Star of David worn in the floor and in fact the flagstone floor was an 18th century addition.
Regardless of whether or not the mysterious cavern or room below the chapel floor contains the Holy Grail, Templar treasures or other such historical mysteries, or even if the carvings do not contain some mysterious code, Rosslyn Chapel is well worth a visit.
*********************************************************************************** Brief History
Rosslyn chapel was founded in 1446 by Sir William St Clair and took 40 years to build, it was infact intended to be a larger cruciform church but was never completed after the death of Sir William in 1484. The reformation bought closure for Rosslyn as a working church and it remained closed to worship until 1861, during this time it survived a visit from Cromwell's army when the wall statues were either hidden or destroyed. The vault beneath the chapel has been sealed since this time. Repairs and restoration work including the laying of the flagstone floor took place in the 18th and early 19th century and in 1881 the baptistery and organ loft were added at the front of the church.
The main mystery of the chapel lies in its historical connections to the Knights Templar and freemasonry and the numerous symbols contained within.
On approaching the Chapel the first thing that you notice is the fact that the chapel is currently covered in a large metal canopy, this has been in place since 1997 and despite the expectation that it would be removed in 2005 I believe that this will be in place for another 2-3 years. This has been put in place due to the fact that the chapel was suffering from severe dampness and the inner walls were covered in green algae. The canopy is obviously doing its job as the condition of the walls is much improved from my previous visits with the green covering virtually having disappeared. Whilst the canopy does detract from the external view of the chapel it does afford visitors the opportunity to climb up to the walkway and see the carvings on the external buttresses.
It is the inside of this remarkable chapel that you come to see and passing under the two gargoyles guarding the North door you pass into the chapel itself and you immediately start to suffer from sensory overload as virtually every stone in this remarkable building appears to have been carved in some way. To list every single carving in the chapel would require a book on it's own and therefore it is not my intention to do so here but I will mention a few of my favourites.
Firstly there are the carvings of the green man, this symbol of nature often associated with pagan fertility rites is not uncommon in medieval churches but certainly not in the profusion found at Rosslyn, I have heard various numbers 103,109, 110 for the amount at Rosslyn, personally I gave up after finding 43. Many of the other carvings have a biblical theme with scenes from Christ's birth through to his crucifixion. The chapel also contains many Masonic symbols and this may explain why Oliver Cromwell left the chapel intact when he invaded Scotland during the Civil War whilst destroying virtually everything else in the vicinity.
My personal favourite carving is of an angel playing the bagpipes, left handed, amongst the musical angels, I also have a morbid fascination with the upturned and bound angel signifying the fallen angel Lucifer and really wonder if it is the death mask of Robert Bruce carved above the Alter to the Virgin Mary.
Whilst all the talk is of hidden codes, many of the carvings leave more questions than answers, how can their be carvings of sweet corn and cacti in a chapel built before Columbus sailed to America? Does this show that the founder's forebear Henry Prince of Orkney really did visit North America 100 years before Columbus? Why is charity shown as part of the seven sins and avarice with the seven virtues? How can the Apprentice pillar carved in the 15th century show a representation of the double helix representation of DNA?
Due to the massive amount of detail within the chapel to prevent yourself being overwhelmed and missing much of the extraordinary detail I would thoroughly recommend going on one of the free guided tours, or if the numbers are great lectures with accompanying laser pens, that take place regularly and/or purchasing the rather nice 56 page guidebook which shows where to find the most interesting carvings and gives a history of the chapel and the St Clair family priced at £3.95.
The Chapel is served by a car park approximately 150 yards down hill from the chapel entrance and additional overflow parking in an adjacent farmers field, this has no doubt been introduced to deal with increased visitor numbers. Entry to the chapel is via a converted outbuilding which in addition to the ticket desk contains a small gift shop, which sells numerous paintings, mock carvings and other Rosslyn related trinkets and numerous fiction and no-fiction books pertaining to Templars, Masons and the Holy Grail (Although 'The Da Vinci Code' did appear to be missing.). As well as the gift shop this building contains a small café serving teas, coffees and biscuits/shortbread with seating for approximately 20 people. Through the door leading to the chapel grounds are 3 unisex/disabled toilets.
The Chapel trust have made an effort to make the chapel accessible to disabled visitors by fitting a ramp from the North Door down the floor of the chapel and with a reasonably wide walkway around the chapel, the pews are all situated in the center, access around the chapel itself will be possible, however the sacristy is down a steep flight of stair affording no disabled access. The major difficulty for disabled visitors however will be the gift shop and café, situated in the cramped converted outbuildings, there is very little room for maneuver in here and would be extremely difficult for a wheelchair. There are however additional gates in the chapel grounds walls and access to the toilet facilities should be easily achieved from the grounds.
Rosslyn Chapel is open Monday to Saturday 10 to 5 and 12 to 4.45 on a Sunday. Please note that this is a functioning Episcopalian Church so may on occasion be closed for Church services such as weddings and funerals.
Admission is £6 for adults and £5 for what is billed as Senior concessions/OAPs so I am not sure if that includes students and unemployed. Children up to the age of 18 go free.
The village of Roslin is situated 6 miles to the south of Edinburgh City Centre and can be accessed by Lothian Buses 15A Service Monday to Friday from St Andrews Square, Princes Street or Lothian Road or First Buses Service 62 Monday to Saturday from the North Bridge.
By Car follow the Edinburgh City By-pass to the Straiton Junction, head south past IKEA to the village of Bilston, turn left following signs for Roslin. Upon entering Roslin follow the main road through the village until it takes a sharp left, at this point turn off the main road on the left (this is more or less straight on) and after approximately 200 yards you will see the car park on the right hand side. Despite claims to the contrary the chapel is not very well sign posted within the village.
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