Gipcy

Reported in an oral presentation by Georges de Soultrait to the 21st session of the 1854 Congrès archéologique de France, as a square font of the 15th century decorated with arches and the arms of France. Quadrangular basin with tapering sides wall-mounted into the right-side wall at the west end of the nave; the front panel is decorated with a charged shield in the centre [emblem or coat of arms partly defaced and unidentified], with four stylised arches, a pair to each side; the sides are plain; the back side is built into the wall. The wooden cover is attached to the upper rim, the lid hinged at the back. Listed in Palissy [ref.: ]: "Cuve des fonts baptismaux. Cuve parallépipèdique fermée par un couvercle en bois articulé sur charnières [...] Sur la face antérieure de la cuve, au centre, un écu aux armes de France (?) [...] armoiries (partiellement illisibles) [...] 16e siècle". Illustrated in Mémoire [ref.: AP03W00187]: "Cuve de fonts baptismaux, pierre, 16e siècle, décor géométrique peut-être représentant des personnages stylisés". [NB: the mention of "geometric motifs perhaps representing stylised people" is probably exagerated; they are simple tracery motifs located on the sides of the coat of arms].