King's College Chapel is a rare survivor from pre-Reformation Scotland. Lavishly endowed by Bishop Elphinstone at the end of the Middle Ages, the chapel was spared the worst iconoclastic horrors of subsequent centuries, slumbering on with benign neglect during the Enlightenment. Even the reforming zeal of the Victorians was tempered by archaeological sensitivity. As a result, the chapel is one of the few places of worship in Scotland where the visitor may experience the unity of a medieval vision. In addition to the structure and furnishings, documentary evidence allows a very complete picture to be built up concerning its contents and use. Bishop Elphinstone's Aberdeen Breviary, defining a specifically Scottish liturgy, lay at the core of worship in the chapel. The services provided the ritual for which the elaborate choir stalls were built. This book aims to integrate Bishop Elphinstone's heritage: the liturgy and music, architecture and fittings. These serve as a spectacular reminder of the medieval riches lost elsewhere in Scotland. The quiet survival of the chapel after the Reformation of 1560 is, in its own way, equally remarkable.
Used only as a store and occasional meeting room for almost 300 years, the building was dutifully maintained by the University even when funds were low. Its strident crown tower had become a symbol of the University's identity and its political allegiance to the king. The later fittings reflect the restoration of worship to the chapel in the 19th century. The 22 authors have drawn extensively on original documents from the University archive to create a multidisciplinary account of the chapel on its 500th anniversary, 2 April 2000.