Unken

The story of the 2003 discovery and rescue of the old font of Unken is told and illustrated in Das gotische Taufbecken aus dem Keller des ganz alten Pfarrhofes [https://www.unken.co.at/festung/das-gotische-taufbecken-aus-dem-keller-des-ganz-alten-pfarrhofes] [accessed 29 October 2022] and in Erster Pfarrhof, gotischer Taufstein, die Keuche [https://www.unken.co.at/dorf/erster-pfarrhof-gotischer-taufstein-die-keuche] [accessed 29 October 2022], with the testimony of Christine Becker; the old font is now [2022] in the Regionalmuseum Heimathaus Kalchofengut. The object is an octagonal font basin with plain vertical sides and a rounded underbowl, equally plain; the inner well of the basin is round; it is not lined nor does it have a drain hole. No cover present. The present font in use in this church is modern, probably introduced in the mid-18th century re-building of the church. A communication from Pol Herman to BSI (e-mail of 6 July 2022) includes an English version of Christine Becker's testimony: "I grew up in the middle of the village. My playground was wonderfully large and full of secrets. The old Griesserhaus, Unken No. 1 in the Kirchgraben, particularly occupied my imagination. It was said there was an underground passage to the church, and a cellar that none of us village children ever dared to go down into, and a prison, the Keuche, from the time when the house was still a vicarage. The years passed with changing owners and residents. Two rooms had been bricked up. Twenty old grave crosses are said to be hidden in the house. Enough to revive the old curiosity and the urge to discover the secrets after such a long time. My neighbour Fritz Sturm found the idea of ​​breaking up the two rooms so interesting that he spontaneously offered to bear the costs. The owner gave us permission to do this, in return for a promise to leave the site as we found it after the end of our research. So we got into the basement. To our great surprise, we found an octagonal stone basin in the rubble, of which no one can say how it got there and what it could have been used for. Experts strongly advised to salvage it. The Unken volunteer fire brigade turned this action into an exercise. Even with experts and with the necessary equipment, it was only possible with great difficulty to bring the stone font up the narrow cellar stairs to the light of day. Now it was puzzling and measuring. Two opposing indentations on the upper edge, apparently filled with lead, indicate that it was probably a baptismal font. The hinges for the lid, which could be opened halfway, would have been in these holes. Experts from the Monuments Office came and confirmed this assumption, at least with the greatest possible probability. The baptismal font therefore comes from the old Unken church, which was first mentioned around 1383. The basin is definitely not older. However, it is certain that it was made of local limestone at least in the 15th century. It stood on a stone base and most likely it was colourfully painted in the taste of the time. Remains of red marble-like paint can be seen in the holes. Deposits inside the basin suggest that it was later misused. Maybe as a grain mortar or for something as mundane as sauerkraut..."