Rushmere / Riscemara / Rushmere St. Michael / Rushmere All Saints

Suckling (1846-1848) writes: "In Domesday Book its name is written Riscemara, when it was the estate of Hugo de Montford, and was valued at 5 shillings and 300 herrings. The Earl held the whole in his own hands, with a fourth part of the church [...] The Church at Rushmere is dedicated to St. Michael [...] In it [...] an excellent octangular font, in good preservation". Noted in Parker (1855) as "a fine octagonal font" in this church. Illustrated in Knott (2009). The font is of the East Anglia type, octagonal basin on an octagonal-to-square pedestal base; the sides of the basin alternate large floral motifs with angel demi-figures holding charged shields [the emblems on the shields have been defaced]; the underbowl chamfer has two levels, with angle heads on the upper and floral motifs below; the pedestal base has seate lions alternating with buttresses. There is much damage to the font; besides the emblems on the shields, the heads of both angels and animals have been hacked off or damaged; there is a large chunk missing from the upper rim, with part of an angel's head, etc. The wooden cover is octagonal, flat and plain, probably modern.