Baptism Font - St John the Baptist - Berkswell, West Midlands - Stone Church Artefacts on Waymarking.com

The late Norman crypt dates back to c1150 and is composed of two chambers both of which are rib vaulted. The unique octagonal western crypt contains a Caen stone font given to the church by the Reverend Thomas Cattell who was the Rector from 1791 until 1826.

"The font made from Caen stone was part of a set of three stone works, a font, a lectern and a pulpit. They were given in memory of the Rev Thomas Cattell who died in 1835. He also left money for the maintenance of the North aisle gallery which he had had erected. The font is the only legacy left of the Rev Cattell. In 1926 the north gallery was deemed to unsafe and was demolished. Also in 1926 a new pulpit was donated and soon thereafter carved wood work replaced the stone pulpit, font and lectern. No church could be found that wanted a font and the instructions were that it was to be broken up and buried in consecrated ground; then the churchwarden had the bright idea of putting it in the crypt. Very occasionally the font in the Crypt is still used for baptisms (Gibbs pg 18).

The Rev Thomas Cattell was Rector of Berkswell from 1791 to 1834. He was a keen huntsman and said that eloquence came best to him when in the saddle. He therefore had a ”hobby horse stool” made to sit on in the pulpit the better to preach his sermons."

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Approximate Age of Artefact: 1835 Relevant Website: [Web Link]

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