Iford / Hyford / Iuorda / Niworde

Listed in Cox & Harvey (1907) as a baptismal font of the Early English period. Described and illustrated in Bond (1908) as a hemispheric mounted baptismal font of the 13th century; the rounded basin is plain but for a roll moulding at the upper rim side. The base consists of a broad round central pedestal and four outer colonnettes; the five are plain except for nouldings at top and bottom; the whole is raised on a cylindrical plinth, also plain. Harrison (1920) reports an Early English font in this church. The Victoria County History (Sussex, vol. 7, 1940) notes: "The 'Niworde' of Domesday possessed a church [...] The nave and original chancel appear to date from the early or middle 12th century. The present chancel was added at the very end of the same century, when the tower was built and a north aisle added to the nave. The north chapel dates from the end of the 13th century [...] The building was restored in 1868 [...] The church was again restored in 1874 [...] The font has a central shaft and four surrounding shafts, supporting a bowl which shows rusticated tooling and appears to have been refaced in the 17th century. The base is circular and modern, but the simple Attic bases of the surrounding shafts show the 13th-century origin of this font." Illustrated in Needham (1944). Described and illustrated in Whiteman (1994): "a fine Early English font, bowl-shaped on a circular column and four supporting shafts". Noted in the CRSBI (2008) as one in a group of "fonts with moulded capitals which form part of a square bowl"; the CRSBI includes in this group the fonts at Cuckfield, Heyshott, Iford, Ripe, Slindon, West Hoathley and Woodmancote". The Sussex Parish Churches web site [www.sussexparishchurches.org/content/view/200/34/] [accessed 30 October 2012] adds the font of Rottingdean as cognate.