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Earlsferry Chapel is a medieval chapel situated in Fife, Scotland, and protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM834. The building stands upon bedrock composed of mafic igneous material, part of an unnamed Carboniferous to Permian intrusion that formed during the Permian period. This geological foundation—characteristic of the Midland Valley's volcanic heritage—would have presented both challenges and opportunities for medieval builders seeking a stable site for religious structures.
The chapel belongs to the tradition of small parochial or private chapels that proliferated throughout medieval Scotland, serving local communities' spiritual needs. Its presence in Earlsferry reflects the area's medieval settlement patterns and religious provision. The durability of the underlying igneous bedrock has contributed to the monument's survival and archaeological significance.
The scheduled monument designation reflects the chapel's importance to Scotland's medieval religious and social heritage. Its location within Fife, a region rich in medieval ecclesiastical sites, places Earlsferry Chapel within a broader landscape of faith and community organisation that characterised the medieval period in eastern Scotland.
Earlsferry,chapel is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM834. View the official record →
Earlsferry Chapel is a medieval chapel situated in Fife, Scotland, and protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM834.
Earlsferry,chapel dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a chapel. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Earlsferry,chapel is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic Environment Scotland — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Scotland. The official designation reference is SM834.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Ardross Castle (3 km), Newark Castle & dovecot (4.1 km), Easter Pitcorthie,standing stone 300m W of (4.9 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Earlsferry,chapel's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Earlsferry,chapel stands on Unnamed Igneous Intrusion, Carboniferous To Permian, bedrock that formed in the Permian. The rock here is mafic igneous-rock.