Clothall / Cladhele / Clahall / Clohall / Clothalle

There are four entries for Clothall [variant spelling] in the Domesday survey [http://opendomesday.org/place/TL2731/clothall/] [accessed 20 October 2016], neither of which mentions a church in it; a priest named Thorbert was lord on one part in 1066, which may indicate that a church existed there at the time. The Royal Commission on Historical Monuments, Hertforshire (1911) reports: "Font: 12th-century, of Purbeck marble, with square basin ornamented with shallow round-headed panels, and carried upon five circular shafts with a moulded base; cover, 17th-century." The Victoria County History (Hertfordshire, vol. 3, 1912) notes: "The earliest known record of Clothall Church is the presentation of a rector in 1237 by Simon de Clothall, lord of the manor. [...] The present church appears to have been erected c. 1350–70 on the foundations of the older one or the older stones re-used, as some of the lower stones are of shelly oolite, the rest of the stonework being of clunch. [...] The font is of the 12th century. It is of Purbeck marble, and has a square basin carried upon a large central shaft, with a smaller shaft at each angle; the bases are moulded and rest on a square plinth. On each face of the basin are four shallow round-headed panels. The 17th-century cover is of wood." In Pevsner & Cherry (1977): "Font: C12, of the table-top type, Purbeck marble, square, with shallow blank round-headed arches." Described and illustrated by Hazel Gardiner in the CRSBI (2016): "An earlier church probably existed on this site, but the only 12thc. feature now present is the font. [...] The font has a square bowl supported on angle colonnettes and a central thicker column. The colonnettes have flattened bulbous bases with merge with the base of the central column. The bases are very damaged, only the NE angle is unrepaired. This monolithic structure is supported on a chamfered plinth comprising a number of shaped stones. Each face of the font is carved with four shallow bays of arcading. The colonnettes are modern. The bowl, base and central support are Purbeck Marble (or possibly Sussex Marble). The font has been damaged and the upper part of the bowl (now repaired with cement) had broken completely away from the bowl. Part of the S side has been restored at the top. Lead lined." Noted in Leach (1975) as a font made of Purbeck marble, without further details [source given: RCHM, 1910].