The Gothic-style Castle Semple Collegiate Church was built in 1504 by Lord Sempill to serve his nearby castle. While the building was likely a remodeling of an unremarkable previously existing building, its renovated iteration would become home to a renowned learning center and an intricate tomb for one powerful patriarch. As a collegiate church, it was built to house a college of clergy, which at Castle Semple included a provost, six chaplains, two choir boys, and a sacristan. Aside from intensive religious academia, the figures here were paid to pray…
