Norman Baptismal Font - Christchurch Priory - Dorset, UK.
N 50° 43.926 W 001° 46.514
30U E 586434 N 5620749
The Priory Church was founded in the 11th Century as an Augustinian Priory & has significant surviving architecture. The black marble Font dates from the 13th Century. The Priory Church is located in Christchurch, Dorset, Great Britain.
Waymark Code: WMMCT8
Location: South West England, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 09/01/2014
Views: 3
The Priory survived the dissolution of the monasteries, & was gifted by King Henry VIII to the town of Christchurch, in Dorset.
"A square Purbeck marble font of late 13th-century date, with three subjects on each face of the bowl. On one face are three Old Testament subjects—Noah and the Ark, Samson and the lion, and Moses striking the rock; on the opposite face to this are the coronation of the Virgin, her burial, and the gift of tongues at Pentecost. Of the two other faces, one has three single figures in quatrefoils, probably Christ between the Virgin and St. John, and the other has Christ's baptism, resurrection, and ascension." Text Source: (
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"Prayer and worship have been offered on this site for more than 1,300 years, and in this Priory Church for over 900 years, by people who have left behind a testimony to their faith in the architecture of this magnificent parish church which dates back to Norman times. We are open every day of the year, and welcome a large number of visitors from across the world." Text source: (
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"A church was established here well before the Norman Conquest and in 1086 it was known as ‘the monastery of the Holy Trinity at Toinham’. The Saxon buildings were demolished under the direction of Ranulph Flambard (a close associate of William the Conqueror and later Bishop of Durham), who envisioned a beautiful church on an ambitious scale; its completion, however, aided by pious and wealthy donors, took almost another 500 years. By 1177, both the church and the town were known as ‘Christchurch’. Legend recalls that during the building work, a roof timber was cut too short but was miraculously lengthened. The deed was attributed to a mysterious carpenter who was thought to have been Christ himself." Text Source: (
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"The story of Christchurch Priory goes back to at least the middle of the 11th century, as Domesday says there was a priory of 24 secular canons here in the reign of Edward the Confessor. The Priory is on the site of an earlier church dating from 800AD. In 1094 a chief minister of William II, Ranulf Flambard, then Dean of Twynham, began the building of a church. Local legend has it that Flambard originally intended the church to be built on top of nearby St. Catherines Hill but, during the night, all the building materials were mysteriously transported to the site of the present priory. Although in 1099 Flambard was appointed Bishop of Durham, work continued under his successors, and by about 1150 there was a basic Norman church consisting of a nave, a central tower and a quire extending eastwards from the crossing. It was during this period that another legend originated, that of the miraculous beam, which was to change the name of the town from Twynham to the present day Christchurch." Text Source: (
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Address:
Quay Road, Christchurch, Dorset, BH23 1BX