Oxford No. 14 / Oxeneford

There are thirteen entries for Oxford [variant spelling] in the Domesday survey [http://opendomesday.org/place/SP5106/oxford/] [accessed 9 November 2016], two of which mention a church in each. Gardner's Gazetteer (1852) [www.historicaldirectories.org/hd/d.asp] [accessed 30 June 2007] quote Dr. Ingram's reference to "a curious piece of ancient sculpture" discovered "a few years since" which "some persons have supposed it to be the ancient font of St. Frideswide's church, which was certainly parochial as well as conventual"; Dr. Ingram, however -reports Gardner (ibid.)- concluded that the said stone was not the old baptismal font but "the celebrated altar [...] or reliquary of St. Frideswide". [NB: Gardner (ibid.) notes that the original parish/conventual church dates back to the 8th century, but we have no information on the earlier font of that church]. The Victoria County History (Oxford, vol. 4, 1979) notes: "The early minster church on the site [...] was presumably rebuilt by the Augustinian canons after their possession was confirmed in 1122 and before the translation of St. Frideswide in 1180. Slight traces of a 12th-century church, the tower of which had been built by 1172 [...] survive in the south transept and south wall of the nave. [...] In 1190, however, fire destroyed the church [...] Rebuilding had begun before 1194" [there is no mention of a font in this church in the VCH entry -- the excavated altar is believed to be 17th-century].