Leadwork, Old and Ornamental and for the most part EnglishLethaby, W. R. (William Richard)
History
Leadwork, Old and Ornamental and for the most part English
Lethaby, W. R. (William Richard)
Leadwork
Another at Long-Wittenham, in the same county, has the arcade at bottom
of very tiny pointed arches of some thirty bays with figures, above are
panels with discs and rosettes.[13] One at Warborough, in Oxfordshire,
is similar in style, made in the same workshop apparently. The bottom
half has a small arcade interrupted after every four arches by three
higher ones: in the twelve small niches are figures of bishops with
mitre and staff and lifted hand in benediction, the three high arches
and the space above the little ones have discs of ornament, the bishops
are repeated from one pattern; the size is 1-3 in height by 2-2
diameter.[14]
[13] See _Archæological Journal_, vol. ii.
[14] _See_ Paley’s _Fonts_.
Woolhampton, in Berkshire, has a font in which the lead is placed over
stone and pierced, leaving an arcade and figures showing against the
stone background.
The font at Parham is of later Gothic. Mr. André gives an account of it
in Vol. 32, _Sussex Archæological Society_; it is only 18 inches in
diameter, and a portion of the bottom is hidden by being sunk into the
stone block on which it stands. The decoration is made by repeats of a
label bearing + IHC NAZAR placed alternately upright and horizontally
with small shields in the interspaces which are said to bear the arms of
Andrew Peverell, knight of the shire in 1351. The style of the lettering
would seem earlier than this. IHC NAZAR was frequently engraved on the
front of knights’ helmets. This is an extremely good example of how a
fine design may be made of simplest elements.
[Illustration: FIG. 31.--Parham, Sussex.]
A Norman font of lead at Great Plumstead was destroyed with the church
in the fire of December, 1891. It is figured by Cotman.[15]
[15] _Arch. Remains_, vol. i., series 2.
The font at Avebury, Wiltshire, has often erroneously been stated to be
of lead; there is a resemblance in the design, but it is of stone
painted.
At Ashover, Derbyshire, the stone font has leaden statues of the
Apostles.
There is a seventeenth century lead font at Clunbridge, Gloucestershire.
A complete list as far as possible follows:--
Berkshire Childrey and Long-Wittenham,
Clewer, Woolhampton, and
Woolstone (Norman)
Derbyshire Ashover (Norman)
Dorsetshire Wareham (Norman)
Gloucestershire Frampton-on-Severn and Llancourt
(similar, Norman)
Siston and Tidenham (Norman)
Gloucester Museum (Norman)
Clunbridge (1640)
Kent Brookland (Norman), Chilham, and
Eythorne (the latter dated 1628,
a copy of a Norman original)
Lincolnshire Barnetby-le-Wolde (Norman)
Norfolk Brundal, Hastingham (Norman)
Northamptonshire Wansford
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