Castlepollard

INFORMATION

FontID: 02752CAS
Church/Chapel: Parish Church of St. Michael (Roman Catholic)
Church Patron Saints: St. Michael
Church Location: 11 Church St, Townparks, Castlepollard, Co. Westmeath, Ireland -- Tel.: +353 44 966 1126
Country Name: Republic of Ireland
Location: Westmeath / Iarmhí, Leinster
Directions to Site: Castlepollard is about 15-20 miles north of Mullingar: take the north local road past Monilea and, a couple of miles past Crookedwood take the left turn (R395) directly to Castlepollard (if you miss this turn, continue to Collinstown and make a left there on the R395 to Castlepollard)
Font Location in Church: In the church grounds
Century and Period: 12th - 16th century, Medieval
Roe (1968: 110-111) reports two vessels found in the grounds of the Catholic church in Castlepollard, "neither of which can properly be described as a font": one is "a large round unperforated bowl, well-made and shapely, which almost certainly was domestic in purpose"; the other, Roe suggests was "possibly used as a mortar". As Roe has indicated, some of these "vessels" may have been either used at some point as baptismal fonts or regarded as such by later parishioners and saved in the church grounds.

COORDINATES

Church Latitude & Longitude Decimal: 53.678307, -7.29799
Church Latitude & Longitude DMS: 53° 40′ 41.9″ N, 7° 17′ 52.76″ W
UTM: 29U 612419 5949076

MEDIUM AND MEASUREMENTS

Material: stone, type unknown
Number of Pieces: two
Font Shape: round
Basin Interior Shape: round
Basin Exterior Shape: round
Rim Thickness: 10 cm (calculated)
Diameter (inside rim): 52.5 cm (Roe)
Diameter (includes rim): 72.5 cm (Roe)
Basin Depth: 8.2 cm (Roe)
Height of Basin Side: 38 cm (Roe)
Basin Total Height: 38 cm (Roe)
Notes on Measurements: Roe (1968: 111) [the "block" measures 36 cm in height, 35 cm in the diameter of the bowl and 8.2 in depth of the bowl]

REFERENCES

Roe, Helen M., Medieval Fonts of Meath, Longford, Ireland: Meath Archaeological and Historical Society, 1968