Buckland Monachorum No. 1 / Bocheland

There is an entry for Buckland [Monachorum] [variant spelling] in the Domesday survey [http://opendomesday.org/place/SX4968/buckland-monachorum/] [accessed 2 June 2015], but it mentions neither cleric nor church in it. Worthy (1887) writes: "I was told that the ancient Norman font had been removed to the new church at Horrabridge". Noted in Pevsner (1952): "Font. Heavy, egg-cup shaped and undecorated. Is it Norman, and has it always been a font? The Buckland Monachorum web site [/www.bucklandmonachorum.org.uk/Church.htm] [accessed 9 January 2009] informs: "Apart from the base of the stone cross outside in the churchyard, the roughly made Font in the north-west corner of the church is by far the most ancient thing to be seen. In style it is called a 'Tub Font' and has always been regarded as Saxon or Norman. Discovered in the ground during repairs to the church in 1857, it was used in two other local churches before finally being returned to Buckland in 1936 […] A study of the Font was made in 1977, comparing it with other fonts of similar age and design. This pointed out that it now looks more symetrical than is the case, due to being set on a modern stone base. Originally, it would have been sunk several inches into the floor to keep it firm, when the lopsidedness would have been more obvious. Roughly hewn from a single block of granite, the font's irregular shape may be either the result of unskilled workmanship or the shape of the original block. We can deduce from damage to the rim that it was once covered with a lid and staple, indicating that it was still in use by the 13th century when the then Archbishop of Canterbury ordered fonts to be locked to prevent holy water from being stolen. Baptism of infants became common practice in England from the 8th century, and Buck land's Font represents a transitional stage in design from a hollow tub, used for the immersion of adults, to a bowl raised on a stand, more suitable for babies. A glance inside will reveal that the working part is only about 12 inches deep. After the 15th century rebuilding, the font was considered too crude and old-fashioned for the improved building, but because it had been used for Holy Baptism, it was buried under the church to safeguard it from profane use." [cf. Index entry for Buckland Monachorum No. 2 for the later font in this church]