Skjeberg / Skiabærgha / Skialbergh

Described in Nordström (1984): reports a scene of Christ in Majesty on the font. An illustration in Champeaux (1972) shows the front side of a square mounted font, probably of the 12th or 13th century; the front side of the square basin is ornamented with a tall arcade of five round arches, the centre one widened to take the form of the usual mandorla in which Christ in Majesty is represented; in the arches to either side, thin hieratic figures (St. Peter, Mary the Virgin, John the Baptist and St. Paul); on the opposite side, another five-arch arcade with another Majestas Domini in the centre, but on this side the MDni is contained in quatrefoil frame that occupies three arches together with the symbols of the four Evangelists [note the censer-carrying angel in the upper left corner, perhaps a conflation of the MDni censing angel and St. Mark's symbol]; only two figures, Mary to the left, and John the Baptist to the right; the second side of the basin has five arches with five sigures, only the one at the extreme right recognisable as St. Peter by the large key he carries; the fourth side has also five arches and five figures, with the one at the extreme left being probably St. Paul with the sword and the book; the figure in the central arch is identified by Solhaug as a priest, clearly displaying the rich stole and alba, as well as a very ornate book in his hand (missal?). The base consists of a central column and four corner colonnettes (though the latter are almost as thick as the former); they have capitals ornamented with foliage and Latin crosses, and well-defined bases; the whole is raised on a square lower base. The whole font is well-balanced and proportioned, and the figures themselves, all raised on stools, are well executed. Illustrated and studied in detail in Solhaug (1998: 27-46), and date to the last quarter of the 12th century; she identifies the work -as well as the soapstone- as local, and "the only specimen in Scandinavia of the type with a four-sided basin carried by five pillars" (ibid., p. 45); Solhaug also identifies some of the individual figures, and points out that "the iconographic interpretation of the font from Skjeberg accentuates that praise and processions had a central place in the celestial liturgy: (ibid., p. 46); she also emphasizes the meaning of the baptismal font as "fons vitae" and dwels on the special significance of the four sided design as replicating "the picture of the world and the celestial city", both four-sided, and the font "as an expression of God's heavenly character and the Church's terrestrial function" (ibid.) [NB: the uniqueness of design pointed out by Solhaug is, as she states, limited to Scandinavia. This type of design -with the expected variations- was, however, common among Norman fonts in England (e.g.:Burnham Deepdale, Burnham Norton, Crambe, Fincham, Locking, Preston, Sculthorpe), and carried over well into the 13th century (e.g.: Buxted), while the representation of holy figures in narrow arcades on the basin sides of fonts found also popularity even in some (so-called) pre-Conquest fonts (e.g.: Stoneleigh) and, later, in lead fonts (e.g.: Ashover, Dorchester, Walton-on-the-Hill, Wareham) -- The entry in Norges Kirker by Sigrid Marie Christie, and Håkon Christie [www.norgeskirker.no/wiki/Skjeberg_kirke] [accessed 19 December 2015] actually suggests that the font may have been carved by an artist from England [="Fonten er muligens hugget av en engelsk kunstner, men ligger over de tilsvarende engelske fonter I kvalitet"]. The font cover is also described in Norges Kirker (ibid.): "Døpefonthimling, forært av Werenskiold mellom 1730 og 1732. Ant. Utført av Thomas Blix og fullført av Erik Revhaug. Himlingens form tyder på at den er et omarbeidet renessansestykke, 6-kantet med 4 bøyler som ender I masker. På midtstolpen figur med velsignelsesgestus. Stående akantusplater mellom bøylene. En av platene adskiller seg sterkt fra de øvrige, idet den er hardt og primitivt skaret, ant. Av Revhaug. På undersiden akantusrosett hvortil festet en due. Hovedfarver: grønt, rødt, gull. Undersiden blå bunn. Største diam. Ca. 150 cm." This same source cites a dating of the font by Reidar Kjellberg between 1125-1150. There is a replica copy of this font on display at the Sarpsborg Borgarsyssel Museum.