Precy Notre-Dame / Précy-Notre-Dame

Described in Collins (1981) as a Romanesque baptismal font consisting of an octagonal basin decorated with four protruding heads crudely carved at 90-degree angles on the sides, one is mutilated, and a rosette on each panel of the sides. As with the font at Chaumesnil, which it is reported to resemble, Collins (ibid.) suggests that the heads may have been intended to represent the four ages of man ["At-on voulu aussi répresenter les quatre âges de la vie?"]; the base is described as an octagonal pedestal raised on a square lower base, the latter decorated with large tendrils at the corners. This font is described in Drake (2002) as comparable to the font at Issy-l'Évêque, "very similar, though with some decoration on the side of the bowl". Drake (ibid.) further remarks that its base "appears to match but the font has been so damaged and so crudely repaired that it is difficult to be sure. The face ornament includes a whorl in a circle and a salient ram's head". Listed and illustrated in Palissy [ref.: IM10002794]: " fonts baptismaux [...] calcaire [...] Cuve octogonale avec trois figures. Boutons sur le pied [...] h = 92 ; d = 76 [...] oeuvre restaurée [...] Il manque une figure [...] siècle 12e siècle". The font, which appears to be in a terrible state, consists of an octagonal basin that has lost one of the three demi-fugures or busts with which it was originally decorated; the sides between the figures decorated with motifs as per Drake above, but the sides have a pattern of small arches at the bottom additionally; the undervowl chamfer probably had some ornamentation but it is now hard to discern; some ball motifs remain on the upper part of the stem; the angle ornamts of the lower base are also damaged. No font cover present.