74 ON DERBYSHIRE PLUMBERY, OR WORKINGS IN LEAD. 



Sussex. — Edburton ; late Norman. 



Parham ; Decorated. 



Pilcombe ; late Norman. 

 Wiltshire. — Avebury ; Norman. 



Chilton. 



Derbyshire, though probably furnishing the material for most 

 of the leaden fonts of England, only possesses a single example, 

 namely, that of Ashover. But the Derbyshire specimen (Plate V.) 

 is one of which the county may be proud, for it is far superior to 

 many of the leaden fonts, and may fairly be described as a good 

 example of true art-workmanship, both in design and execution. 

 The one that it most resembles is that of Walton-on-the-Hill, the 

 bowl of which is encircled with an arcade of nine arches over as 

 many seated figures. The font at Dorchester has also arcaded 

 figures ; and the one at Childrey has twelve effigies of mitred 

 bishops in as many recesses. The most elaborate specimen is 

 that of Brookland, which has two rows of arcading, the upper 

 having the signs of the zodiac, and the lower the labours of the 

 month. 



The Ashover font attracted some little attention from archaeo- 

 logists at a time when other leaden fonts were altogether 

 unnoticed. Mention is made of it in the treatises relative to 

 fonts by Gough, Simpson, and others. It is engraved in the 

 second volume of the Topographer for the year 1790, and another 

 equally poor and ill-proportioned wood-cut appeared many years 

 later in the second volume of Glover's Derbyshire. The font 

 stands on a singularly plain and unsuitable stone base of octagonal 

 shape, probably of fifteenth century workmanship. The circular 

 leaden bowl is divided into twenty arcades, in each of which 

 stands an upright male figure, somewhat gracefully draped. 

 Each figure holds a book in the left hand, and at first sight they 

 all seem similar. But closer observation shows that there are 

 two sets of figures, which are repeated alternately. Ten of them 

 have the open right hand raised with the palm outwards, but the 

 other ten have the right hand placed against the breast close to 



