Dunboyne No. 2

INFORMATION

FontID: 00900DUN
Church/Chapel: Church of SS. Peter and St. Paul
Church Patron Saints: St. Peter & St. Paul
Church Location: Main St, Dunboyne, Co. Meath, Ireland -- Tel.: +353 1 825 5342
Country Name: Republic of Ireland
Location: Meath / An Mhí, Leinster
Directions to Site: Take the N3 from Dublin for 9 miles to Clonee; Dunboyne is a mile west on the R156/R157.
Font Location in Church: Reported outside the church ca. 1968; as a grave-mark ca. 1862
Century and Period: 12th - 16th century, Medieval
Cogan (1992 c1862, vol. I: 189) mentions a baptismal vessel that was older than the serving font [cf. Index entry for Dunboyne No. 1], and that was set as a marker for the grave of a priest. Roe (1968: 115) remarks that this probably the same object she found outside the church, "a substantial sub-rectangular block of stone, the sides of which taper slightly from top to the bottom, the top corners being neatly chamfered downward for about 18 cm." Roe (ibid.) expresses her doubts about whether "this vessel was ever a christening font", perhaps on account of the "roughly hammer-dressed" exterior of the font, although, as she points out, the basin well and the rim "are smooth and well-finished". Pike (198: 57) lists this font as "inspected but not catalogued".

COORDINATES

Church Latitude & Longitude Decimal: 53.419333, -6.477639
Church Latitude & Longitude DMS: 53° 25' 9.6" N, 6° 28' 39.5" W

MEDIUM AND MEASUREMENTS

Material: stone, type unknown
Number of Pieces: one
Font Shape: rectangular
Basin Interior Shape: round
Basin Exterior Shape: rectangular
Drainage Notes: [inside of the basin well was plastered]
Rim Thickness: 7.5 cm
Diameter (inside rim): 43 cm
Basin Depth: 19.5 cm
Height of Basin Side: 40.5 cm
Basin Total Height: 40.5 cm
Basin Upper Panel Dimensions: 40.5 cm (heigh) x 38 [tapering to 35] cm (wide)
Notes on Measurements: Roe (1968: 115)

REFERENCES

Cogan, Anthony, The Diocese of Meath: Ancient and Modern, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin: Four Courts Press, 1992 (c1862)
Pike, Joan H.K., "Medieval Fonts of Ireland", [Supplied courtesy of The Dept. of the History of Art, Trinity College, Dublin], [Ireland]: [Privately printed], 1989
Roe, Helen M., Medieval Fonts of Meath, Longford, Ireland: Meath Archaeological and Historical Society, 1968