Compassionate looks greeted those who resided in the hospital built next to the Church of St. Mary Magdalene: look for them in the portal of the facade and you will find them in the angels placed to support the lintel and in the Magdalene painted in the lunette.
The complex of buildings dates back to the mid-14th century, when the school of the White Disciples (lay people gathered in congregations and confraternities who underwent a life of prayer and penance,) built the church and adjoining hospital to help the needy, who were in great numbers at that time.
This institution lasted for almost five centuries, undergoing changes of use and masonry modifications: however, the church and the pointed-arched doorway overlooking a small courtyard accessed from St. Alexander Street have remained intact in their original appearance.
In the eighteenth century, a cloister with a four-sided portico and loggia was built: unusual in the overall effect because the cornices, balustrades, and capitals hark back to a sixteenth-century style and not Baroque, as would be typical of the time of construction.
The church, which is bound by Architectural Heritage, is currently deconsecrated and is used for exhibitions and conferences.