Irstead / Iristead / Irsted / Irstede / Ordesteda / Oresteda / Orsteada

Blomefield (1805-1810) gives the Domesady survey entry as "Ordesteda", which shows no church or cleric in it, and writes: "The Church is dedicated to St. Michael, and is a rectory [...] ; in the reign of Edward I. when the rector had a manse, and 7 acres of land, the abbot of Holme was patron, and had a portion of tithe [...] William, son of Bartholomew de Reedham, was rector, sans date"; the second recorded rector appears in Blomefield (ibid.): "1306, Mr. Walter de Pykeryng". Lewis' Dictionary of 1848 entry for Irstead St. Michael's notes: "the font is curiously sculptured." Described and partially illustrated in Bond (1908) as an octagonal font with symbols of the Passion on the basin side panels, one of them "is the Vernicle of St Veronica -the handkerchief with the miraculous print of Our Lord's face- and cruciferous nimbus"; it also has several human figures on the pedestal base. Tyrrell-Green (1928) contends that "writers are mistaken [...] in stating that the vernicle of St. Veronica is represented at Irstead"; he identifies lions séjant alternating with saints on the pedestal base of this font, and states that "the unusually good font at Irstead [...] has a curious pattern behind the devices of its panels. This has been often wrongly described, but is evidently intended to represent clouds, and resembles the heraldic charge of nebuly. Upon this background of cloud are shown, in separate panels, a hand with a scroll, the Agnus Dei, the Head of Christ within a nimbus with a cross, and another head within a circle". Described in Pevsner & Wilson (1997), who identify the "The Baptist's head on a salver opposite the Agnus Dei". Described and illustrated in Knott (2004), where he notes that, whereas the east panel of the basin depicts the head of Christ "on a patterned background", the second head, contrary to Mortlock's view, "is the head of St. John the Baptist, prepared on a platter for Salome". Two other panels are described by Knott: on one, "the hand of God offers a scroll, presumably of the Law, while a fourth has very curious, dovelike shapes coming togetherto form somethingwhich may or may not be a green man." [NB: Knott's identification of the two head panels is probably more likely than the earlier references in Bond or Tyrrell-Green]. Traces of colour remain on both panels. At the angles of the underbowl are small human (?) heads. Flat wooden font cover; appears modern. The font is raised on a two-step octagonal plinth.