Statues - Hither & Thither

Site Search:

Oxford
Oxfordshire
South East England

Magdalen College ☒
(Chapel)

Persons Related to the Founding of Magdalen College

date?

Description

Above the gate under the west window of the chapel is a frieze with five niches with canopies, in which five small statues are placed. From left to right:

Oxford - Persons Related to the Founding of Magdalen College
1. St. John the Baptist
2. Edward IV
3. St. Mary Magdalen
4. St. Swithun
5. William Waynflete

St. John the Baptist, after the Hospital of St. John the Baptist, that was converted into this college.
Edward IV (Rouen 1443 - Westminster Palace 1483), Son of Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, and Cecily Neville - great-great-grandson and heir general of Edward III; king of England 1461-1470 and 1471-1483 (Wikipedia). Under his auspices the college was begun.
St. Mary Magdalen, 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.
St. Swithun (or Swithin) (d. c. 862), bishop of Winchester and subsequently patron saint of Winchester Cathedral (Wikipedia).
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).

Sources do not agree on the 2nd and 4th statue:

The Universal British Directory of 1791 and The Oxford University and city guide on a new plan (1834), write that the 2nd statue depicts Henry III and the 4th statue William of Wykeham.
In a paper presented at Magdalen by the president of the Oxford Architectural and Historical Society at 25 November 1893 is said that the 2nd statue is Edward IV, and the 4th, either St. Swithun or Wykeham.
The Victorian Traveller's Guide to Oxford (1901) had Edward IV and St. Swithin respectively.

To us, Edward IV and St. Swithun seems the most likely, we think that if the fourth statue should depict William of Wykeham, he had been depicted kneeling, just as the king 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.

Sources & Information

Oxford History, index.
Oxford Journal - Saturday 25 November 1893 (British Newspaper Archive).

Location (N 51°45'7" - W 1°14'49")