Construction of the chapel began in the middle of the XV century. The idea to build the chapel belongs to William Sinclair, third Earl of Orkney, who wanted to use this structure as a family tomb. But William was not destined to see Rosslyn Chapel – he died before it was completed. After his death, the construction was suspended son Oliver will finish only the roof of the chapel. For 40 years, continued decoration of the chapel of stone carvings depicting animals, plants, angels, demons and strange characters who are still trying to decipher the scientists around the world.
Since 1592 Chapel was in complete desolation. Only in 1736 a descendant of James Sinclair repaired the most serious damage to Rosslyn Chapel, but it was limited and. In 1861, the third Earl of Roslin James Alexander ordered the architect David Bryce to do the restoration of the chapel. It was re-consecrated in 1862 and since then has served the church functions. Striking decoration of a small chapel has always occupied the minds of both researchers and curious tourists. It is not surprising that Rosslyn Chapel is surrounded by a wide variety of legends – and some of them tell about the Masons and the Holy Grail.
In Rosslyn Chapel is decorated with carved stone pillar, nicknamed “Apprentice Pillar.” She tied one of the most famous legends of the chapel: say that the tower was decorated with a pupil of the great master-mason. Old master went to Rome to clarify exactly how to decorate the column. However, on his return, he saw that the student has completed the upcoming master work: he decorated column pattern that I saw in a dream. The young student was hoping that his praise and maybe pay a little more than promised, but his initiative turned against him: thread was so good that the master was kindled hatred and envy to apprentice. Blinded by rage, he killed an innocent student and was subsequently executed. Some researchers believe that this is a real event, citing as evidence the presence in the chapel of the reliefs that depict the master and disciple. In addition, there is evidence, according to which during the construction of the chapel, Bishop of the Diocese of St Andrews, in charge of the village of Roslin, was in Rome – he probably went there and then to get a blessing from the Pope to the purification of the chapel, as its walls there was some unpleasant event.
At the same time, there is an assumption that the legend is based on the Masonic legend, which tells about the master Hiram Abiff, adorn the temple of Solomon. It is believed that the colonies – a world tree Yggdrasil (gigantic ash), the form in which the Norsemen were the universe. A node is a zodiacal constellation, and the branches symbolize the planet. At the base of the column shows the dragons, who are trying to tear the roots of Yggdrasil, the tree of force to deprive the earth. There is a legend which says that within the column is hidden holy grail, which until now nobody has been able to extract from there. What exactly is this mysterious artifact – a mystery. Some believe that in the bowl are the relics of Mary Magdalene. In any case, the holy grail is of interest to many researchers, despite the fact that there is no scientific evidence that it really exists. Therefore, the ministers of the chapel are subjected to pressure from the people obsessed with finding the cup, which in that no matter what want to explore inside the column.
Also there is a legend, according to which in the crypt Sinclair has a secret passage, which takes you to the cache. More options branch: in the cache may be the Scottish crown, and holy grail, or the Knights Templar treasure.
The ceiling of Rosslyn Chapel is decorated with strange symbols that have so far nobody has been able to decipher. It is connected with them another tradition concerning the treasure of the Templars: legend has it that, to decode these symbols, you can get the data and create a map that indicates the location of a cache of values. At the same time, there is another theory that the symbols will indicate where the hidden ancient manuscripts. But the most plausible theory suggests that the characters – it’s just notes some tunes. This statement is supported by the fact that the walls of the chapel depicts a lot of variety of musical instruments that keep the angels.
Many secrets that hides the Rosslyn Chapel, the inspired writer Dan Brown to create a best-seller “The Da Vinci Code”, which sounded the legend of the Holy Grail. After the release of the novel number of visitors Rosslyn Chapel has increased, despite the fact that the facts that the writer has given in his work, are not supported by scientific evidence. Someone thinks he can solve the puzzle of the mysterious chapel, while others just want to look at this beautiful building – in any case, Rosslyn Chapel is still one of the most mysterious churches in the world.
Secrets of Rosslyn Chapel
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