Salisbury No. 1 / Sarum

Described in Buck (1951): "Very similar to that at St. Edmund's, but the rim has been cut down about two inches. The church was built at about the same time as St. Edmund's" [i.e., 1267-1270]. The Victoria County History (Wiltshire, vol. 6, 1962) notes: "Excavations carried out in 1956 suggest the existence of a 12th-century church, bearing, however, no relation to the present building. [...] the oldest part of the present church is the chancel. This was built early in the 13th century, apparently as an addition to an existing building, which must have succeeded the 12thcentury church of the 1956 excavation. [...] Extensive restoration was carried out about the middle of the 19th century. [...] The 13th-century Purbeck marble font was moved to the west end of the church." Noted in Pevsner & Cherry (1975): "Font. Octagonal, of Purbeck marble, with two flat trefoil-headed blank arches on each side." Baptismal font of the Norman period [source: 1911 Encyclopedia, entry for Salisbury, England -- e-version at http://69.1911encyclopedia.org]. The Wiltshire County Council describes it as "a 13th century Purbeck marble" font [www.wiltshire.gov.uk]