Dunsany

In Isaac Butler's 'Journey from Dublin to the Shores of Lough Derg', a trip that took place soon after 1740 (Cooper, 1892), a description of Dunsany includes a mention of the baptismal font at the Church of St. Nicholas: "Near the West Window is a curious Octagon Font of Green marble, with ye Figures of ye 12 Apostles in bass Relief on ye Sides. There is also on ye pedestal Effigies of 4 Men having a Coat of Arms on their right hand & each of ym fronting ye 4 cardinal points of heaven." The font is also described and illustrated in Westropp (1894), who makes a reference to Butler's report: "This font was at the west end of the church in Butler's time (1750) [sic]; he says it is of 'green marble'. It is really of yellow sandstone." Westroop (ibid.) places the font in the chancel in his own time [i.e., ca 1894] and describes it thus: "[the font] stands 3 ft. 6 in. high, and has an octagonal head 26 inches across,with a round basin and drain. Beginning at the north, the carvings [...] are as follows: --1, two angels supporting a shield, with the instruments of the Passion; below is a pelican in piety, amidst foliage, as a type of Christ; 2, St. Peter with the keys, and St. Paul with the sword; below is a fretwork, like groining; 3, St. Andrew with his cross, and St. Thomas with a spear; below are a hound and hare, with foliage; 4, St. Bartholomew with the knife, and St. James Minor with the club; below are trefoil-headed flutings; 5, a saint, with a long staff (perhaps St. James Major), and another (perhaps Matthias) with a halbert; below are plain flutings; 6, two saints; below is a pattern of fleur-de-lis and trefoils; 7, a saint, and St. Matthew with the bag; below are birds and fleurs-de-lis [cf. infra for Roe's view]; and 8, the Crucifixion, between the B. Virgin, and St. John, the latter distinguished by the book; below are interlaced leaves. On the faces of the pier, following the same order are --1, fretwork; 2 to 5, angels holding shields, with (2) the cross, (3) the heart pierced by two swords, (4) the Fitz Gerald, and (5) the Plunkett arms; 6 and 7, sprays of foliage; 8, flutings. This was probably put up by Christopher, Lord Dunsany, and his wife Anna Fitz Gerald. Described in Cooke (1903): "A font almost precisely similar in design may be seen in the choir of the ruined church of Dunsany [...], but it is of smaller size, and the figures and ornaments with which it is sculptured are less prominent than those upon the example at Kilcarn. It is 3 feet 6 inches in height, with an octagonal head. The panels contain representations of the Crucifixion, many of the Apostles, and other figures. The shaft is carved in heraldic and other devices. Its probable date is about the middle of the fifteenth century." Described and illustrated in Roe (1968), with reference to Westropp (1894), from whom she differs in the identification of the seventh panel. Westropp [cf. supra] had identified the last two figures as John holding a book, followed by Matthew with his tax-money bag, whereas Roe identifies them as John holding a goblet and James the Great in pilgrim garb with staff and scallop shell. The font is octagonal at the basin, stem and lower base, with the basin consisting of two separate blocks [basin proper and underbowl -- cf. Index entry for Rathmore for another possible case of such font design]. The first side of the basin contains a scene of the Crucifixion; the next has a pair of angels holding a shield charged with the Instruments of the Passion; the next six sides contain the figures of the Apostles, in pairs, carrying their symbols. The chamfer of the underbowl is decorated with a number of symbols and motifs: Ogee arches, fluting, other geometrical, floral, etc., as well as three panels involving animals: one has three doves (?) with fleur-de-lys, a second has the pelican feeding its chicks with the blood plucked from its breast, and a third has two qaudrupeds passant towards the left amid foliage. The stem of the base is decorated on four sides with an angel holding a shield in each panel; the four shields which contain coats of arms are identified by Roe (ibid.) as belonging to the FitzGerald and Plunket families; the other four sides contain rows and columns of upright and upside-down fleur-de-lis "so shallowly and smoothly carved as to suggest no more than the glazing on a tile" (Roe, 1968). Roe's illustration shows the upper part of the basin badly damaged and she warns that the deterioration of the rest of the stone is advancing rapidly. Described and illustrated in Pike (1989). On the underbowl pelican Hourihane (2003) writes: "The panel shows the pelican with its neck curved in a slightly exagerated circle, piercing its breast and feeding three young chicks in the plain basket-like nest beneath. The bird is shown in great detail, with its beak and claws portrayed naturalistically. Similarly, the depiction of the three young chicks is highly detailed [...] The font dates from the late fifteenth century." [NB: the photographs taken of this font in the past show the problem with making any identification of the vertically corresponding scenes and themes based of the cardinal points; the upper basin clock has been replaced on a different position at different times, therefore some of the descriptions locating the themes on the N-S-E-W axes will appear contradictory]