Linton nr. Kelso

Described and illustrated with a sketch in Walker (1887) as not a large basin, circular both inside and ou; there is no drain; the outer sides have a tall scallop-like ornamentation in very shallow relief, like and upside down blind arcade; the upper part of the base, cylindrical and plain, is part of the same block of stone. A recent [Jan 2007] photograph of this font by "musicmuse_ca" appeared in the FLICKR site [http://www.flickr.com/photos/42304632@N00/369413452/] [accessed 19 August 2007], and shows the old basin, which has the upper half of the round pedestal base as part of the same stone block, raised on a modern construction that resembles the classic design of Norman bases [round pedestal on a thick round moulding and a square lower base]. The photograph, which shows the font with a wooden round cover has the following caption: "The Norman font now stands inside the church at Linton. It is very old, and dates back to the early 12 century. Its bowl and upper part of the stem is formed from one block of stone. It was "cast out of the kirk" during the Scottish reformation. It re-appeard in 1850, when it was found in a blacksmith's shop. It was eventually returned to the church and is currently in use. It is large enough to allow total immersion. The cover was made from wood from a pear tree that once grew in the church garden." [NB: the above text appears also in the Morebattle web site [http://www.morebattle.bordernet.co.uk/history/linton-church.html] [accessed 28 October 2007], accompanied by a digital photograph of the font.