Southwell

Trebeck (1900) [source: www.nottshistory.org.uk/trebeck1900/southwell2.htm] writes: "The font was destroyed in the general pillage that took place in Cromwell's time, and was replaced by this poor specimen in 1661." Described and illustrated in Pevsner & Williamson (1979), who give the fonts at East Bridgford, Newark, Orston, Scarrington, Shelford, Sibthorpe, Tythby, Walkeringham and Warton, all in Notinghamshire, as cognates of the same period. The font consists of a rounded octagonal basin decorated with large panels with what appears to be a X motif, raised on an octagonal pedestal base with up-and-down panels enclosing a variety of symbols or motifs: rosettes, rhomboids, etc.; the splaying lower base is octagonal and plain. The wooden font cover is round and of the tall-dome type ending in a knob finial, with ornamented sides. [NB: the Southwell Minster web site [www.southwellminster.org.uk] notes: "The discovery of a Roman Chrsitian font near to Douthwell demostrates that Christianity was present before the Romans left Britain in 410 AD." -- we have no additional information on this Early Christian font or the one destroyed in the Commonwealth period]