Church
St Giles' Cathedral
Gothic kirk topped by a rare medieval crown spire on eight flying buttresses.
0:00≈ 2 min
Location
0:00≈ 2 min
About this audio guide
This guide to St Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh follows tree-ring specialist Coralie Mills into the roof space above the cathedral's famous crown spire, checking a story that had stood for centuries: that mason John Mylne rebuilt the crown in 1648. You'll hear how she counted growth rings in the oak beams and matched them against Scotland's tree-ring record, and how the timber's origin in Darnaway Forest complicated the accepted history. It traces what her count revealed about how old the crown above you actually is.
This audio guide was created using AI.