Lampaul-Guimiliau No. 2 / Lambaol-Gwimilio

A complex holy-water stoup in the wall of the church at Lampaul-Guimiliau, probably dating from the late 17th century, shows a scene of Christ's baptism, the angel to the left and John the Baptist to the right; Christ is in the middle, his feet hidden behind a shell ornament and he is dressed only in a loin cloth. There is an architrave ornament over it. The basin itself has winged motifs and squares on the upper register; below these runs a rope motif; below this are winged motifs (description based on ill. in Malle, 1994). The Dictionnaire des églises... (1966- ) mentions two stone stoups from the 16th century but gives no other details. Le patrimoine des communes du Finistère (1998) relates that this stoup [there is another one on the mullion of the main entrance] is called erroneously "le bénitier du diable", since the other two figures are two penitents trying to scape from the serpent at the bottom of the basin. This source dates the stoup to the 16th century and explains that the type of stone used for many of the stoups in this area, kersantite (?) or "pierre noire", is polished black by the rubbing of the hands which use it.