Barcelona No. 7

Described and illustrated in Catalunya romànica (1984- , v. I: 257) as a holy-water stoup of the first quarter of the 11th century; origin unknown; acquired in 1932 by the Museum; the stoup consists of a square basin with vertical sides that are ornamented thus [L->R]: 1)Greek cross in a circle in the centre; to the left, arranged vertically, a foliage (?) motif atop, and a six-point star in a square at the bottom; to the right of the cross, a motif consisting of a spiral and -possibly- a foliage motif or expansion of spiral; 2)rainbow (?) with palmettes in the spandrels; 3)pattern made of tiny six-point stars inscribed in hexagons; 4)pattern made of several larger motifs of the same type as 3); the inner basin is tetrafoil, with the spandrels ornamented with foliage motifs. The base is formed by four plain detached cylindrical columns that rest on a plain square lower base. It appears monolithic and resembles some of the early Norman square-mounted baptismal fonts found in England [cf. Index entries for Fincham, Crambe, Burnham Norton, Landewednack, etc.], particularly the one at Lenton, square and with a tetralobed inner well, although obviously different in the ornamentation and the lack of columnar support.