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Magdalen College  ☒
(St John's Quad, Founder's Tower)

St. Mary Magdalen, St. John the Baptist, Henry III, and William Waynflete
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Oxford / St. Mary Magdalen, St. John the Baptist, Henry III, and William Waynflete   Oxford / St. Mary Magdalen, St. John the Baptist, Henry III, and William Waynflete

Description

The façade of the Founder's tower facing St. John's Quad has four niches with statues flanking the oriels of the first and second floors:

Oxford - St. Mary Magdalen, St. John the Baptist, Henry III, and William Waynflete
1. St. Mary Magdalene		 Oxford - St. Mary Magdalen, St. John the Baptist, Henry III, and William Waynflete
2. St. John the Baptist		 Oxford - St. Mary Magdalen, St. John the Baptist, Henry III, and William Waynflete
3. Henry III		 Oxford - St. Mary Magdalen, St. John the Baptist, Henry III, and William Waynflete
4. William Waynflete

    Second floor:
  1. St. Mary Magdalene -- Mary of Magdala is described, in the New Testament, as one of the most important women associated with Jesus during his ministry (Wikipedia).. She is depicted with the ointment jar with which she cleansed Christ's wounds.
  2. St. John the Baptist, (c. 6 BC- c. 36 AD), itinerant preacher and a major religious figure who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River. He baptized Jesus at "Bethany beyond the Jordan." (Wikipedia).. After the Hospital of St. John the Baptist, that was converted into this college.
    First floor:
  3. Henry III (1207-1272), son of King John and Isabella of Angoulême; king 1216-1272 (Wikipedia). Founder of the Hospital of St. John the Baptist.
  4. William Waynflete, (c. 1398 - 1486), born William Patten, Provost of Eton (1442-1447), Bishop of Winchester (1447-1486) and Lord Chancellor of England (1456-1460). Founder of Magdalen College (Wikipedia).
The Victorian Traveller's Guide to Oxford (1901) and Pictures in colour of Oxford, with its university and colleges : with descriptive notes (1910s) write that the 3rd statue depicts Henry VI.
The Universal British Directory of 1791 and The Oxford University and city guide on a new plan (1839) have for this statue Henry III, which seems correct.

High in the main tower are four statues. We were not able to make photos of these four. We photographed two of them:

Oxford - St. Mary Magdalen, St. John the Baptist, Henry III, and William Waynflete Oxford - St. Mary Magdalen, St. John the Baptist, Henry III, and William Waynflete
St. Mary Magdalene		 Oxford - St. Mary Magdalen, St. John the Baptist, Henry III, and William Waynflete

Colleges in Oxford

Most of the university colleges in Oxford occupy large areas with several buildings and courts ('quads' in Oxford). There are numerous statues, mostly in the façades of the various buildings. The statues with ☒ are not visible from the public road. Most of the colleges are accessible for visitors during certain times of the day, some for free, others for a small (or not so small) fee.

Tags

Location (N 51°45'7" - W 1°14'48")

Item Code: gbse180; Photograph: 20 October 2015
Of each statue we made photos from various angles and also detail photos of the various texts.
If you want to use photos, please contact us via the contact form (in Dutch, English or German).
© Website and photos: René & Peter van der Krogt