Benedict Spinola was an Italian merchant and banker who lived and worked in London in the 16th century. In 1580 he illegally sold seven acres of land in Aldgate in London to the Bishop of Oxford for £2,500. This land had been left to Magdelene College by Lord Auden, who in turn received it from Henry VIII in gratitude for his services as Lord Chancellor (during which time he helped to 'solve the problem' of Anne Boleyn amongst other things). The College suffered financial hardship for centuries - hardship that would have been relieved by rental income from the land in Aldgate - and tried many times to have the sale reversed. Spinola died of plague in 1580 but that wasn't sufficient revenge for Magdelene. In 1989 the College redeveloped the Quayside area of Cambridge and commissioned Peter Fluck and Roger Law (creators of Spitting Image puppets) to create an unflattering gargoyle of Spinosa. He spouts water into the river in summer, in winter he is cobwebby and cold and, it seems, provides comfort for the Fellows looking across at him!
