Santiago de Compostela No. 2

Pedestal font of suspect composition with a round bucket-shaped basin, plain except for some mouldings, and a short pillar which appears to have been left over from a previous life elsewhere; the latter has Ogee tracery and arches on each side and is of a totally different colour and texture than the basin. The inside of the bowl has been divided in half by an insert, one of the halves having three compartments for baptismal accessories. The (metal; bronze?) cover is round and has a decorative band on the outer side; the centre, where the arm of the cover arm-handle connects, has a circular motif that bears an inscription [transcription not available] on the outside and a radiated pattern on the inside; the outer circle is also decorated with pilgrim shells, a large one at the tip of the arm-handle; the arm-handle is fastened to the centre of the cover at the tip, while the other end connects to a pivot secured both to the side of the basin and to the ground; the cover opens and slides around to the side held by the arm-handle and rotating on the pivot. [NB: such cover fastening system is not comon, but there are a few examples extant, chiefly in France]