Old Travel Blog Photograph Chapel Screen Falkland Palace Fife Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of the Chapel Screen in Falkland Palace in Fife, Scotland. The chapel is orientated east to west and is rectangular in plan. It is entered through an ante chapel at the west end, with a fine 16th century oak screen separating this anti chapel with the main nave. The sanctuary area is at the east end and beyond this is a small vestry. The oak screen is thought to be the work of Richard Stewart and dates from around 1540. It is a rare structure and is regarded as being of national importance. The nave of the chapel has a spectacular compartmented oak ceiling, which may also date to the 1540s. Much of the ceiling was originally painted in 1633 but it was heavily restored in 1896, when a major restoration of the south range of the palace was undertaken. One of the first scenes for Outlander was filmed in the picturesque town of Falkland, which substituted for 1940s Inverness. Before Falkland Palace was built a hunting lodge existed on the site in the 12th century. This lodge was expanded in the 13th century and became a castle which was owned by the Earls of Fife, the famous Clan MacDuff. The castle was built here because the area could be easily defended as it was on a slight hill. The surrounding land eventually became the Palace gardens.



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