On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern 9781463219581

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On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

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Gorgias Liturgical Studies

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This series is intended to provide a venue for studies about liturgies as well as books containing various liturgies. Making liturgical studies available to those who wish to learn more about their own worship and practice or about the traditions of other religious groups, this series includes works on service music, the daily offices, services for special occasions, and the sacraments.

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

S. Anita Stauffer

1 gorgias press 2010

Gorgias Press LLC, 180 Centennial Ave., Piscataway, NJ, 08854, USA www.gorgiaspress.com Copyright © 2010 by Gorgias Press LLC Originally published in All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise without the prior written permission of Gorgias Press LLC. 2010

1

ISBN 978-1-60724-381-6

ISSN 1937-3252

Published first in the U.K. by Grove Books, 1994.

Printed in the United States of America

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern by S. Anita Stauffer Study Secretary for Worship and Congregational Life Lutheran World Federation, Geneva, Switzerland

CONTENTS CHAPTER

Preface 1. Water and Baptism 2.

PAGE

5 6

Baptismal Space

12

3. Early Christian Fonts

17

4.

Fonts for Today

45

Bibliography

62

Index

72

Colour Plates

between pages 30 and 3 1

ILLUSTRATION CREDITS Unless otherwise indicated, all photographs are by the author. Gratitude is expressed to those who provided photographs, plans, and permissions. Chapter 4: 1. Photo courtesy of Belli & Belli, Architects; 4. Photo copyright Richard Sexton, courtesy of Mighetto Goldin, Architects; 5. Photo by Robin Coutts, courtesy of David Stancliffe; 7. Plan courtesy of John C. Voosen, Architects; 8. Plan courtesy of Belli & Belli, Architects; 9. Photo courtesy of David Housholder; 10. Photo courtesy of Alan Fudge. Colour Plates: 1. Photo by the author, published by permission of B. Younes Habib, Conservateur du Musee National du Bardo, Tunis; 4. Courtesy of David Housholder.

Preface This little book has a modest definition: it is a report of research in progress, in an a t t e m p t to understand the meaning and practice of baptism in the early C h u r c h and to renew its practice in liturgical churches today. T h e primary focus of the research is ancient and m o d e r n baptismal fonts, because these places of baptism have too often been ignored by liturgical historians and liturgists. A thorough examination of baptism (in history or today) cannot even be approached without attending to the archaeological, architectural, liturgical, and theological evidence these fonts present. Chapter 1 examines the meaning and modes of baptism, and chapter 2 gives an overview of the history and meaning of fonts. In chapter 3, nearly fifty early Christian fonts are introduced, as a means of illustrating the richness of baptism in the patristic Church and, in a sense, to suggest some prototypes for fonts today. C h a p t e r 4 is an a t t e m p t to provide, on the foundations of the historical explorations, architectural and ritual suggestions for recovering baptism's rich meanings in liturgical churches today. T h e point is not repristination, but renewal of the life of the Church. There are intentional limitations to the histoncal material in this volume. First, it concentrates in the West. 1 Second, it deals with fonts, and only incidentally with the baptisteries which were their spatial context. 2 Third, it is limited to fonts which I have examined personally. 3 Fourth, it focuses on the water bath of baptism, and is n o t concerned with other ritual elements. Fifth, it is written for those without training in early Christian archaeology. Sixth, it must acknowledge that there are unanswered questions a b o u t many of the histoncal sites, because of physical damage, or because re-excavation is needed, or because liturgical texts are lacking. As excavating continues, some questions will be answered, and s o m e conclusions here will change. Some of the questions will never be answered. Where possible, translations of patristic writings have been quoted from readily accessible sources, to encourage readers to pursue the writings. Citations in footnotes are abbreviated; full information is provided in the bibliography. With a grateful heart I thank those w h o have shared knowledge and explored questions with me: Ralph R. Van Loon (who reviewed chapter 4), Edward J. Yarnold, S.J., (who reviewed my manuscript); and Mario Mirabella Roberti, Richard Krautheimer, Noel Duval, Eugene L. Brand and G o r d o n Lathrop, all of whose writings and consultations have given m e insight. I acknowledge a similar debt to the late J. G. Davies. Finally, I thank Margaret A. Alexander, w h o with generous graciousness has both literally and figuratively opened to me the baptisteries of ancient Tunisia, and who has insightfully reviewed my manuscript; it is to her that I dedicate this book. 1

2

3

Dura-Europos, Syria, is the exception. It is included because it is by far t h e most ancient f o n t discovered by archaeologists. Prior literature has given p r e d o m i n a n t attention to the baptisteries, often virtually ignor-

ing the fonts—their raison d'être! With the exception of Dura-Europos.

Preface

5

1. Water and Baptism In the beginning was the primeval water of chaos. In the end will be the river of the water of life. Between creation and t h e e s c h a t o n , h u m a n beings are f o r m e d in the waters of their mothers' wombs, and life is sustained by water. It is an absolute necessity; there cannot be life on earth without water. In situations of inadequate water, h u m a n s as well as plants and animals eventually die. But water is multivalent; it is death-dealing as well as life-giving. In water there is both creation and destruction, both life and death. W h e n there is too m u c h of it, water can be an agent of destruction. In torrential rains and floods, people are drowned, trees are uprooted, and property is obliterated. A third layer of m e a n i n g to water comes f r o m its use in washing a n d bathing. In h u m a n use, bathing is both cleansing and renewing. A look at tne m o n u m e n tal public baths of the ancient Roman world makes it clear that even then bathing was for purposes beyond the hygienic, although that was and is primary. N o t only is water both creative and destructive in nature, and cleansing in h u m a n life, but also in its uses by its Creator. T h e waters of creation in Genesis c o m e to their culmination in the river of the water of life in Paradise described in Revelation (22.1-2). G o d used water in the great Flood both to destroy the face of the earth, and to save N o a h and his family. Likewise, G o d parted the waters of the Red Sea to save the Israelites, then caused the returning waves to d r o w n the Egyptians and all the Pharaoh's horses. Repeatedly in the Bible, purification from sin is described as washing. Most importantly, Jesus himself is the living water (John 4.10). Here, in brief, are the phenomenological and typological bases for s o m e of t h e principal meanings of water in holy baptism. Like water it self, baptism is also a b o u t birth/life, aeath/burial, and bath. There are other layers of m e a n i n g to baptism, of course, but these are the principal meanings related to the symbolism of water. Such typology was often reflected in ancient prayers over the water for baptism, and, following this tradition, the typological understanding of water was fully reflected by Martin Luther in the 'flood prayer' {Sintjlutgebet) of his 1523 baptismal rite: 'Almighty eternal G o d , according to your righteous j u d g m e n t you cond e m n e d the unbelieving world through the flood, and in your great mercy you preserved N o a h and his family. You drowned hard-hearted Pharaon and nis host in the Red Sea and led your people Israel through the same on dry ground, thereby prefiguring this bath of baptism. Through the baptism of your dear Child, o u r Lord Jesus Christ, you have consecrated and set apart the Jordan and all water as a salutary flood and a rich and full washing away of sins . . 1

T r a n s l a t i o n based o n t h a t in U l r i c h S. L e u p o l d , (ed.), Luther's Works: Liturgf and Hymns. Vol. 53 (Fortress Press. P h i l a d e l p h i a , 1965), p.97. T h i s p r a y e r w a s n o t original w i t h L u t h e r , b u t w a s his a d a p t a t i o n of t r a d i t i o n as h e k n e w it. L u t h e r ' s p r a y e r w a s a d o p t e d b y T h o m a s C r a n m e r in his 1549 b a p t i s m a l rite; t h e s e m e d i e v a l p r a y e r s a r e t h e lamtinueJ

6

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modem

on p. 7

opponiel

M E A N I N G S OF BAPTISM

These several layers of the meaning of water are reflected in the theology of baptism and t h e symbolism of the baptismal font. Birth and cleansing seem to have been the most prominent understandings of baptism in the West prior to the fourth century, when the paschal understanding of baptism gained prominence. 1 Birth imagery for baptism is p r e d o m i n a n t in the East, b u t there are mentions of it also in the West. T h e primary biblical foundation for this u n d e r s t a n d i n g is J o h n 3.5, ' N o one can enter the kingdom of G o d w i t h o u t being born of water and Spirit.' In Titus 3.5, baptism is referred to as 'the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.' In the late second century, Irenaeus of Lyon referred to the baptismal font as a womb. 2 In early third-century Carthage, North Africa (in what is n o w Tunisia), Tertullian wrote extensively of baptism as birth, and he described the baptized as 'little fish' w h o begin their life in the water and w h o cannot survive except by remaining 'in the water' with Christ, the 'great Fish' 3 ; indeed, Tertullian's emphasis on water is dramatized by his contrast between fish, which can only live in water, and vipers, asps, and other serpents, which live in dry and waterless places. 4 Fish imagery was also used by Ambrose, two centuries later in Milan. After referring to the living creatures in the waters of creation, he said to the newly baptized: 'These were born in the beginning, at the creation; but this gift was kept for you: that the waters should regenerate you into grace, even as those other waters generated into life. Imitate the fish; it received a lesser grace than you, but you should still consider it a marvel. It is in the sea and above the waves . . . On the sea the tempest rages, violent winds blow; but the fish swims on. It does not drown because it is used to swimming. In the same way, this world is the sea for you. It has various currents, huge waves, fierce storms. You too m u s t be a fisn, so that the waves of this world d o not drown you.' 5

1

2 3

4 5

p r i m a r y s o u r c e s f o r p r a y e r s o v e r t h e w a t e r in t h e A m e r i c a n Lutheran Book of Worship ( 1 9 7 8 ) . t h e A m e r i c a n E p i s c o p a l Book of Common Prayer (1979). t h e C h u r c h o f E n g l a n d Alternative Service Book ( 1 9 8 0 ) , t h e C a n a d i a n A n g l i c a n Book of Alternative Services ( 1 9 8 5 ) , t h e A n g l i c a n A New Zealand Prayer Book ( 1 9 8 9 ) . t h e S o u t h A f r i c a n Anglican Prayer Book ( 1 9 8 9 ) , a n d t h e A m e r i c a n M e t h o d i s t Book of Common Worship ( 1 9 9 3 ) . A s i m i l a r p r a y e r is a l s o u s e d in t h e c o n t e m p o r a r y R o m a n C a t h o l i c b a p t i s m a l rite. K a v a n a g h ( 1 9 7 8 ) , p . 4 6 . F o r biblical a n d p a t r i s t i c b a c k g r o u n d o n t h e s y m b o l i s m o f t h e f o n t a s t o m b a n d w o m b , s e e B e d a r d a n d Riley. S i m i l a r , a l t h o u g h less f o c u s e d , i n f o r m a t i o n is p r o v i d e d in B u r n i s h . Adversus haereses 4. It is i n t e r e s t i n g t o n o t e t h a t t h e r e is a p a v e m e n t m o s a i c f r o m a n e a r l y t h i r d - c e n t u r v C h r i s t i a n c a t a c o m b in H a d r u m e t u m ( n o w k n o w n as S o u s s e , T u n i s i a ) w h i c h p r e s e n t s t h i s i d e a w i t h m a r i n e i c o n o g r a p h y . A d o l p h i n in t h e c e n t r e r e p r e s e n t s t h e c r u c i f i e d Christ. An a n c h o r replaces t h e cross, c o n f l a t i n g b a p t i s m a n d crucifixion. T h e small fish r e p r e s e n t b a p t i z e d C h r i s t i a n s . A d d i t i o n a l l y , a m u l t i t u d e of fish a r c d e p i c t e d in m o s a i c o n t h e s u r f a c e o f t h e l a t e - s i x t h - c e n t u r y f o n t f r o m Kélibia. T u n i s i a (see c h a p t e r 3). De Baptismo I. De Sacramentis 111:3: E n g l i s h text in Y a r n o l d , p. 121 ( 2 n d ed.. p . 1 2 1 ) .

Water and Baptism

7

Tertullian's birth imagery was picked u p later by other North Africans, including Cyprian, Optatus, and Augustine. In north-eastern Italy in the mid-fourth century, Zeno of Verona (but w h o was born in Africa) wrote of the baptismal font as the w o m b of the virgin mother, the Church. 1 Such font-as-womb imagery was also used in North Africa by Augustine and Quodvultdeus. In late fourthcentury Milan, Ambrose, whose principal understanding of baptism was paschal, also referred to baptism as ' e n t e r i n g . . . mother's w o m b and being born again.' 2 In Rome in the mid-fifth century, Leo the Great also called baptism a birth and the font a womb. 3 Baptism is also a bath, a washing (1 Corinthians 6.11; Ephesians 5.26; 2 Peter 1.9), a sacramental purification f r o m sin. In mid-second-century Rome, Justin described baptism as a washing. 4 Half a century later in Carthage, Tertullian m a d e it clear that this is no ordinary bath, however: 'The flesh is washed that the soul may be m a d e spotless.' 5 Later in the third century, Cyprian of Carthage also wrote of baptism as washing, adding that 'the water ought to be first cleansed and sanctified by the bishop that it may be able to wash away in its baptism the sins of the man w h o is baptized.' 6 In the eighth-century Gallo-Roman Gelasian Sacramentary, the prayer consecrating the f o n t calls it an 'unspotted womb', b u t then switches to bath imagery: 'May the f o u n t be alive, tne water regenerating, the wave purifying, so that all w h o shall be washed in this saving laver by the operation of the Holy Spirit within them may be brought to the mercy of perfect cleansing.' 7 But by the fourth century, the p r e d o m i n a n t understanding of baptism, especially in the West, was paschal: to be baptized is to be joined to the death and resurrection of Christ (Romans 6.3-5; Colossians 2.12). T h e three meanings— birth, bath, burial—are not unrelated, however. T h e baptismal bath is in fact a drowning flood (1 Peter 3.20-21); the new birth m u s t be preceded by the death of the old person. As St. Paul wrote: 'Do you not know that all of us w h o have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.' (Romans 6.3-5; NRSV) Already in third-century Egypt, Origen had reflected Romans 6 in writing of baptism 8 and had referred to the font as a sepulchre 9 , but the paschal understanding became the cantm firmus in the fourth-century mystagogical 1

Invitations to the Baptismal Font IV. De mysteriis IX:59; English text in Srawley, p.151, 3 Forexamples, seeSermones 24, In nativitatem Domini; 25. In nativitate Domini; and 70. De passione Domini. 4 First Apology* 61. 5 De Resurrectione Carnis 8; English text in Whitaker, p. 10. 6 Letter 70, to Januarius, 1; English text in Finn, p.138. 7 Book LXL1V; Whitaker, p. 187. 8 Homily on Exodus 5:2. 9 In Romanos 5:8. 2

8

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modern

writings of Cyril ot J e r u s a l e m , C h r y s o s t o m , T h e o d o r e o f M o p s u e s t i a , a n d A m b r o s e . In late f o u r t h - c e n t u r y M i l a n , A m b r o s e said to his neophytes, ' B e c a u s e you are i m m e r s e d , t h e sentence, "You are dust and to dust you shall return ", is served . . . S o it is that the f o n t is a kind o f grave.' 1 I le elaborated, '. . . you w e r e i m m e r s e d : which m e a n s t h a t you were buried with Christ.' 2 A few decades later in N o r t h Africa, Augustine (who had been baptized in Milan by A m b r o s e ) c o m bined the birth and paschal images o f b a p t i s m : 'All w h o attain to this grace die t h e r e b y to sin . . . and they are thereby alive by being reborn in t h e baptismal font, just as C h r i s t rose again from the sepulchre.' 3 Also in the fourth century. Cyril o f J e r u s a l e m c o m b i n e d the motifs ot birth and death. S p e a k i n g to n e o p h y t e s o f their triple s u b m e r s i o n , Cvril c o m m e n t e d : 'In o n e and the s a m e action you died and were born; the water o f salvation b e c a m e both t o m b and m o t h e r tor you . . . A single m o m e n t achieves both ends, and y o u r begetting was s i m u l t a n e o u s witn y o u r death.' 4 In the mid-fifth century. Pope Leo the G r e a t , d e f e n d i n g t h e practice o f baptism at the Easter Vigil, wrote, 'in the rite of baptism death c o m e s from the slaying o f sin, and t h e triple i m m e r s i o n imitates the three days o f burial, and the rising o u t o f the water is like his rising f r o m the t o m b . ' 5 T h i s baptismal resurrection into new life in Christ has an eschatological note: it is proleptic e n t r a n c e into Paradise. 6 W h i l e this u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f baptism is stronger in the East 7 than in t h e West, it is not a b s e n t in the West. In tne third century in C a r t h a g e , Cyprian wrote: T h e C h u r c h , setting forth the likeness o f paradise, includes within her four walls fruit-bearing trees . . . T h e s e trees she waters with f o u r rivers, that is, with the f o u r G o s p e l s , wherewith, bv a celestial i n u n d a t i o n , she bestows the grace o f saving Baptism.' 8 Monns or BAPI ISM

Four t e r m s have been used to designate the various m o d e s of baptism: s u b m e r sion, i m m e r s i o n , affusion, and aspersion. A b o u t the first two there has been u n e n d i n g c o n f u s i o n and debate. Submersion is s o m e t i m e s called 'total i m m e r s i o n ' , thus referring to the fact that in s u b m e r s i o n a person's entire body is pushed c o m p l e t e l y u n d e r t h e water. A n o t h e r c o m m o n English term for this m o d e is 'dipping'. S y m b o l i c a l l y and experientiallv. s u b m e r s i o n is the fullest representation o f the paschal m e a n i n g o f 11:19: Y a r n o l d . p i 17 ( 2 n d c d „ p . l 13).

1

De Saeramentis

2

De Sacramentis

3

Enchiridion

4

Mystagogic

5

Epistle /6; Finn, p.81.

11:20: Y a r n o l d . p.l 17 ( 2 n d ed.. p.l 18).

8:42; Finn, p. 152. Catecheses,

S e r m o n 2 : 4 ; Y a r n o l d , p.76 ( 2 n d cd., p.78).

6

S e e S t a u f f e r . ' F o n t s : B a p t i s m , Pascha. a n d Paradise'.

7

A particularly rich e x a m p l e is O d e 11 ot t h e Giles of Solomon, from second-century l a s t Syria. S e e t h e t r a n s l a t i o n by J a m e s C h a r l e s w o r t h , q u o t e d in T h o m a s M . Finn, Early

Christian

Baptism

and the Catechumenate:

West and

East Syria

(I .i turcica I Press,

C o l l e g e v i l l e , M i n n e s o t a . 1992), p p . 1 1 7 - 1 1 8 . 8

Tpistle 7 2 : 1 0 ; t r a n s l a t i o n in A l e x a n d e r R o b e r t s a n d J a m e s D o n a l d s o n , (eds,). The Stctne

Fathers,

Ante-

V o l u m e V ( C h a r l e s S c r i b n e r ' s S o n s . \evv York. 1 9 2 * ) . p . 3 8 2 .

Water and Baptism

l)

b a p t i s m . T o b e s u b m e r s e d is to be b u r i e d u n d e r t h e w a t e r ; it is ( a l m o s t ) t o d r o w n . S u b m e r s i o n is also an e f f e c t i v e a c t o f n e w birth, as t h e c a n d i d a t e c o m e s u p o u t o f t h e w a t e r as o u t o f t h e w o m b . S u b m e r s i o n is also t h e m o s t c o m p l e t e ritual a c t o f b a p t i s m as c l e a n s i n g . For s u b m e r s i o n to be p r a c t i s e d , t h e w a t e r m u s t be q u i t e deep. (See chapter 4 regarding the practice o f submersion.) In immersion, t h e a d u l t c a n d i d a t e s t a n d s o r k n e e l s in w a t e r ( u s u a l l y o f a d e p t h b e t w e e n t h e a n k l e s a n d t h e waist) w h i l e w a t e r is p o u r e d o v e r t h e h e a d , o r t h e h e a d is p u s h e d partially i n t o t h e w a t e r . W i t h an i n f a n t , t h e b o d y ( e s p e c i a l l y t h e h e a d ) is l o w e r e d partially into t h e water, o r t h e b o d y is partially l o w e r e d i n t o t h e w a t e r as w a t e r is p o u r e d o v e r t h e h e a d . I m m e r s i o n is n o t as full a sign o f a n y o f b a p t i s m ' s m e a n i n g s as is s u b m e r s i o n . It is not known h o w J e s u s was baptized, though the m o s t ancient artistic representations show i m m e r s i o n , n o t submersion. It is also n o t known h o w Baptism in apostolic and post-apostolic times was done. T h e earliest fonts in the West, in the third and fourth centuries, were often n o t deep enough for easy s u b m e r s i o n . By the fifth and sixth centuries, s o m e fonts were deep e n o u g h for submersion, although it is not known in m o s t places w h e t h e r submersion was actually practised. Part o f t h e c o n f u s i o n b e t w e e n s u b m e r s i o n a n d i m m e r s i o n is t h a t in m a n y a n c i e n t texts in t h e W e s t , it is difficult o r i m p o s s i b l e t o d e t e r m i n e w h i c h m o d e was m e a n t . T h e n t h e a r c h a e o l o g i c a l e v i d e n c e is crucial, b u t u n f o r t u n a t e l y m m a n y places it has b e e n w h o l l y o r partially d e s t r o y e d . In a d d i t i o n t o k n o w i n g t h e size a n d d e p t h o f t h e f o n t , it is n e c e s s a r y to k n o w t h e w a t e r s o u r c e a n d w h e t h e r t h e r e was a drain. In t h e a b s e n c e o f s u c h e v i d e n c e , it is s i m p l y i m p o s s i b l e t o k n o w w h e r e s u b m e r s i o n was used, a n d w h e r e i m m e r s i o n w a s u s e d . It is clear, h o w e v e r , f r o m b o t h texts a n d a r c h a e o l o g y , t h a t in b a p t i s m in t h e patristic a n d early m e d i e v a l p e r i o d s an a b u n d a n t a m o u n t o f w a t e r w a s n o r m a l l y u s e d . Affusion is a m o d e in w h i c h w a t e r is p o u r e d o v e r t h e c a n d i d a t e ' s h e a d . A f f u s i o n b e g a n to r e p l a c e i m m e r s i o n , e s p e c i a l l y in c o l d n o r t h e r n c o u n t r i e s , as t h e b a p t i s m o f i n f a n t s b e c a m e c o m m o n in t h e M i d d l e Ages. A c c o r d i n g t o J . G . Davies. by t h e f o u r t e e n t h c e n t u r y a f f u s i o n was c o m m o n in F r a n c e , w h i l e it did n o t b e c o m e w i d e s p r e a d in Italy until t h e f i f t e e n t h c e n t u r y , n o r in E n g l a n d u n t i l t h e s i x t e e n t h . 1 M a r t i n L u t h e r e n c o u r a g e d a return t o s u b m e r s i o n in s i x t e e n t h c e n t u r y G e r m a n y , as a m o r e c o m p l e t e sign o f t h e radical p a s c h a l m e a n i n g o f baptism.2 Likewise the C h u r c h o f England's 1549, 1552, a n a 1662 Prayer B o o k s also c a l l e d for d i p p i n g . H o w e v e r , it was n o t until t h e late t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y t h a t c o n g r e g a t i o n s o f liturgical c h u r c h e s h a v e b e g u n o n c e again p r a c t i s i n g e i t h e r submersion or immersion. Aspersion, o r s p r i n k l i n g , is t h e m o s t m i n i m a l m o d e o f b a p t i s m . P r i o r t o t h e late M i d d l e Ages, it was u s e d o n l y in clinical b a p t i s m s ( t h a t is, o f d y i n g p e r s o n s , f o r which Cyprian o f Carthage defended the practice.11 lowever, sprinkling was the 1

The Architectural

2

See his Larue Catechism, section o n B a p t i s m ; ' T h e H o l v a n d Blessed S a c r a m e n t ot Baptism' ( 1 5 1 9 ) , Luther's Works. Vol. 35 (Fortress Press, Philadelphia, 1960), p.29; T h e Babylonian Captivity o f the C h u r c h ' ( 1 5 2 0 ) , Luther's Works. Vol. 36 (Fortress Press. P h i l a d e l p h i a . 1 9 5 9 ) , p p . 6 7 - 6 8 ; and L u t h e r ' s 1 5 2 3 b a p t i s m a l ritc. Luther's H - M ' i . Vol. 53 (l-ortress Press, P h i l a d e l p h i a , 1 9 6 5 ) , p . 1 0 0 .

10

Setting of Baptism,

p.73.

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modem

which Cyprian of Carthage defended the practice. 1 However, sprinkling was the normal parish practice by the Renaissance, and fonts had become tiny. 1 he result was a minimalistic understanding of baptism. Renewed baptismal rites in the late twentieth century have called for a more abundant use of water, and have often suggested submersion or at least immersion. T h e landmark ecumenical document, Baptism, Eucharist and Ministiy. said clearly that 'In the celebration of baptism the symbolic dimension ot water should be taken seriously and not minimalizea.' 2 MOVLMLVI

:\

I Ml kl H A L

Fonts are containers designed to hold the water in which baptism is administered. In addition to the mode of baptism, two other movements in the water are important with regard to the design of fonts. These movements are the twin actions ot descent/ascent, and the act of passage through the water. All three ha^e symbolic meanings. The earliest baptisteries in the West, in R o m e and Milan, had in-ground pools with steps. T h e steps were not merely utilitarian; indeed, sometimes the early fonts were so shallow that steps were not even actually necessary. It would seem that the steps were installed for symbolic purposes: in order for the candidate to experience descent into burial with Christ, and ascent into new life in the resurrection. Ambrose and other patristic writers referred frequently to 'goingdown' into the water. It is possible to conceptualize the meanings of baptism in this period in terms of descent from the world and ascent into the body of Christ. 3 In time the number of steps was interpreted svmbolicallv. T h e experience of passage through the waters was also important in the patristic period, no doubt a reference to the passage of the Israel ites through the Red Sea. Ambrose wrote: 'He w h o passes through the waters of this font—that is. from earthly things to heavenly (for this is the meaning of this passage, this pasch: it is the passage of the person who is baptized; it is a passage from sin to life, from guilt to grace, from vileness to holiness—he w h o passes through these waters does not die; he rises again. 4 •Most paleo-Christian fonts in the West had steps 011 at least two sides, perhaps enabling the candidate to experience passage through the water from the old life to the new.

1 2

3

4

Letter 69: 12. Faith a n d O r d e r P a p e r \ o . I l l (World C o u n c i l ot" C h u r c h e s . G e n e v a , 1982) B a p t i s m V . I 8 , p.6. See s c h e m a t i c in W a y n e A. M e c k s , The First Urban Christians (Yale L nivcrsitv Press, N e w H a v e n , C o n n e c t i c u t , 1983) p. 156. De Sacramentis 1.12; Yarnold. p. 104 ( 2 n d ed., pp. 104-105).

Water and Baptism

11

2. Baptismal Space Baptism is by water and the Spirit (John 3,5). While the Holy Spirit can be anywhere and everywhere, water needs ¡.place to be, a container. In nature, of course, water's containers are oceans and seas, lakes and ponds, streams and rivers. It was in those large natural water'vessels' that Christian baptisms first occurred. Jesus was baptized in the River Jordan. Most other N e w 'Iestament accounts of baptisms d o not indicate where they took place. The baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch by Philip h a p p e n e d simply when they 'came to s o m e water,' and the two 'went down into the water,' where Philip baptized him (Acts 8.36-8). In Acts 16.13 -15, probably Lydia and her family were baptized in a river outside a gate to Philippi (in what is now Greece). Just as the writers ot the N e w Iestament seem to have assumed that baptisms would be done in natural bodies of water and thus did not exert much effort in describing the places, so too in post-apostolic times. In the first two or three centuries of Christianity, the usual sites for baptism were also natural bodies of water: streams, rivers, lakes, and the sea. T h e Didache, a church manual probably written in Syna sometime between A.D. 60 and A.D. 1601, said that baptism in the Triune N a m e is to happen 'in running water,' but added that, if there is no running water, 'other water' could be used, and if there was neither, water could be poured. 2 T h e text added that cold water was better than warm. In Rome in about A.D. 160. the First Apology o f j u s t i n Martyr indicated simply that baptism occurred 'where there is water'. 3 Approximately A.D. 215, in Rome, the Apostolic Tradition attributed to Hippolytus 4 specified that the water should be 'pure and flowing'5. T h e presbyter was to stand 'at the water', as the deacon and candidate went 'down . . . into the water'. 6 It is not known w h e t h e r this was in a natural body of water or perhaps in a pool in a building or courtyard. In Carthage, North Africa, sometime between A.D. 160-220, Iertullian wrote that it 'makes no difference' whether baptism happens 'in a sea or a pool, a stream or a fount, a lake or a trough . . ,'7 Here, then, is acknowledgment that both natural bodies of water and constructed pools were being used for baptism. As early as the second century, while there were persecutions, sometimes baptism may have occurred in the baths and courtyard fountains of private h o m e s and perhaps in small public baths. 8 1 2 3 4

5 6 7

8

The Didache w a s p e r h a p s a r e d a c t e d text by m u l t i p l e p e o p l e at d i f f e r e n t t i m e s . C h a p t e r 7; W h i t a k e r . p . l . 61, W h i t a k e r , p.2. It is n o t k n o w n w h e t h e r Apostolic Tradition w a s d e s c r i b i n g actual b a p t i s m a l p r a c t i c e in R o m e , or w h a t its a u t h o r c o n s i d e r e d to b e t h e ideal. XX1:2; W h i t a k e r , p.5. XXI:1 1: W h i t a k e r , p.5. On Baptism 4; text in A l e x a n d e r R o b e r t s a n d J a m e s D o n a l d s o n , (eds.). The Ante-Nicene Fathers, III ( C h a r l e s S c r i b n e r ' s S o n s , N e w York, 1918), p p . 6 7 0 - 6 7 1 K r a u t h e i m e r (1986). p.24.

12

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modern

The o l d e s t archaeological e v i d e n c e of a b a p t i s m a l f o n t per se is in t h e m i d third-century h o u s e c h u r c h in D u r a - E u r o p o s , in w h a t is n o w Syria. The f o n t is rectangular, w h i c h s e e m s to have b e e n t h e n o r m a l s h a p e of t h e m o s t a n c i e n t fonts. 1 In t h e f o u r t h c e n t u r y , particularly a f t e r t h e R o m a n E m p e r o r C o n s t a n t i n e e n d e d t h e p e r s e c u t i o n s in A.IX 313. special places for Baptism w e r e c o n s t r u c t e d o r a d a p t e d . D u r i n g t h a t period, adult b a p t i s m was t h e n o r m , lb a c c o m m o d a t e all of t h e c a n d i d a t e s for b a p t i s m , a n d t o p r o v i d e privacy, since t h e y were baptized n a k e d , t h e baptisteries in t h e W e s t w e r e usually d e t a c h e d o r o n l y loosely a t t a c h e d to t h e c h u r c h buildings. The f o n t s w e r e i n - g r o u n d pools. T h e earliest and m o s t i m p o r t a n t baptisteries in t h e W e s t were in R o m e ( w h e r e t h e m o s t a n c i e n t f o n t was r o u n d ) a n d M i l a n (with o c t a g o n a l fonts). T h r o u g h t h e sixth a n d into t h e seventh c e n t u r y , f o n t s w e r e a l m o s t always built in t h e g r o u n d . The sense of d e s c e n t into a n d a s c e n t o u t of t h e w a t e r was im p o r t a n t in b o t h t h e o l o g y a n d practice. A variety of s h a p e s o c c u r r e d , with g e o g r a p h i c a l d i f f e r e n c e s . For e x a m p l e , in Italy a n d France, o c t a g o n a l a n d hexagonal f o n t s w e r e m o s t c o m m o n . In early C h r i s t i a n Tunisia, t h e r e were m a n y c r u c i f o r m a n d q u a t r i l o b e fonts, as well as hexagonal ones. C i r c u l a r a n d o t h e r s h a p e s of f o n t s w e r e f o u n d in a variety of places. In early c e n t u r i e s a f t e r C o n s t a n t i n e , baptisteries in the W e s t w e r e located in cathedrals, since t h e b i s h o p s presided at b a p t i s m s . H o w e v e r , as t h e C h u r c h grew, t h e r e w e r e n o t e n o u g h b i s h o p s to a c c o m m o d a t e all t h e c a t e c h u m e n s , a n d presbyters of parishes w e r e p e r m i t t e d to a d m i n i s t e r t h e w a t e r bath ( t h o u g h not t h e c o n s i g n a t i o n , a n d h e n c e t h e b e g i n n i n g of t h e s e p a r a t i o n of b a p t i s m f r o m c o n f i r m a t i o n 2 ) . As a result, baptisteries began to be built at parish c h u r c h e s . 3 M a n y of t h e fifth- a n d sixth-century baptisteries e x t a n t today in Tunisia w e r e n o t associated with cathedrals. By t h e e i g h t h c e n t u r y in m a n y areas in t h e West, a d u l t b a p t i s m h a d largely been replaced by i n f a n t b a p t i s m , partly d u e to t h e high i n f a n t m o r t a l i t y rate a n d parental fears resulting f r o m t h e d o c t r i n e of original sin. Fonts n o l o n g e r n e e d e d to be large e n o u g h for t h e s u b m e r s i o n or i m m e r s i o n of adults. T h u s began a decline in b a p t i s m a l t h e o l o g y a n d b a p t i s m a l p r a c t i c e — a n d in t h e size a n d design of baptismal f o n t s . In s o m e places existing f o n t s were m a d e s m a l l e r In o t h e r places, n e w f o n t s were c o n s t r u c t e d — b u t instead of pools w h i c h w e r e c o m pletely in t h e g r o u n d , f o n t s with sides partially a b o v e t h e g r o u n d w e r e built. Eventually t h e n o r m b e c a m e pools w h i c h were totally a b o v e t h e g r o u n d . For a time they r e t a i n e d t h e visual sense of b e i n g pools, and i n f a n t s u b m e r s i o n a n d i m m e r s i o n were practised. In at least o n e , in Cividale, Italv, even a d u l t s u b m e r sion could still be practised, 4 I lowever, f o n t s c o n t i n u e d to b e c o m e smaller a n d smaller. Rather t h a n looking like pools o r basins, t h e y began to r e s e m b l e tanks a n d tubs. By t h e twelfth a n d t h i r t e e n t h c e n t u r i e s they were set on bases o r o n e or m o r e pedestals. In the 1

Sec c h a p t e r 3 t o r d e s c r i p t i o n . See Fisher a n d Stevick. ' R e g a r d i n g t h e s i t u a t i o n in N o r t h Africa, see Duval (1989), 4 Sec c h a p t e r 2

Baptismal

Space

13

R o m a n e s q u e and G o t h i c periods in E u r o p e , these fonts could still a c c o m m o d a t e infant i m m e r s i o n (and often, i n f a n t s u b m e r s i o n ) . M o s t fonts during this t i m e were sculpted s t o n e 1 , but s o m e were w o o d , and in E n g l a n d there were n u m e r o u s decorated lead tubs (which were m o s t frequently round). 2 As affusion (pouring) replaced i m m e r s i o n and s u b m e r s i o n by the late sixteenth century, fonts b e c a m e m i n i m a l . In t i m e they resembled birdbaths, t h e n salad bowls, and finally teacups. T h e rich biblical and patristic understandings o f baptism as birth, burial, and bath had been lost. It b e c a m e i m p o s s i b l e to interpret the font as w o m b o r t o m b o r even as bathtub. O n e c a n n o t bathe, not to speak o f drown, in a fingerbowl. This m i n i m a l i s m in fonts is o n e i m p o r t a n t factor in parishioners' m i n i m a l , if not magical, c o n c e p t s ot baptism. M o s t people in the C h u r c h today understand baptism merely as a 'nice' c e r e m o n y with gurgling babies, rather than as a consequential event o f death and n e w life. T h e rich biblical u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f water and t h e profound patristic theology o f baptism have largely disappeared from the life o f the C h u r c h . Through the M i d d l e Ages, deteriorating baptismal practices led to trivial fonts, which in turn has had a deleterious effect on the people's understanding ot baptism. People do learn from w h a t they see; t h e q u e s t i o n is ivbat t h e y learn from t h e fonts which they see in their parish churches. "Iwo m a j o r factors in the late twentieth century have resulted in n e w a t t e n t i o n to the theology o f baptism as well as to providing fonts c o n s i s t e n t with that theology: (1) Vatican II and the resulting recovery o f the adult c a t e c h u m e n a t e — first in the R o m a n C a t h o l i c C h u r c h , and s u b s e q u e n t l y also in the Anglican and Lutheran C o m m u n i o n s , and (2) publication a n d reception o f the W o r l d C o u n c i l o f C h u r c h e s ' Faith and O r d e r paper, Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry. At last the trend toward m i n i m a l i s m is b e g i n n i n g to reverse. T h e r e is growing e c u m e n i c a l awareness o f the profound m e a n i n g o f b a p t i s m and therefore o f the s y m b o l i s m o f water, with the result that parishes are recognizing the need f o r fonts which e n a b l e the a b u n d a n t use o f water. O n c e again, after so m a n y centuries, fonts are being designed and c o n s t r u c t e d which a c c o m m o d a t e the i m m e r s i o n and even s u b m e r s i o n o f adults as well as infants. si I APIS

S i n c e the third centurv, baptismal fonts have been built in various s h a p e s 3 and in m a n y sizes. T h e shapes o f early-Christian fonts included the simple to the c o m plex, and can be c o n s i d e r e d in five basic categories: 1. S i m p l e : rectangle, square, circle 2. Polygonal: hexagon, o c t a g o n 3. C r u c i f o r m : cross, q u a d r i l o b e 4. Polylobe: with six, eight, o r twelve lobes 5. O t h e r 1 2 3

See Nordstrom. S e e B o n d , c h a p t e r V I I ; a n d Wall, p p . 2 7 6 - 2 8 4 . An i n t e r e s t i n g and helpful, a l b e i t i n c o m p l e t e a n d s o m e t i m e s e r r o n e o u s , t y p o l o g i c a l classification o f fonts bv s h a p e is p r o v i d e d in K h a t c h a t r i a n ( 1 9 8 2 ) . p p . 6 9 - 7 8 .

14

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modem

Each of these shapes itself can be simple, or altered in some way. For examples: concave sides might appear on a square or a hexagon; a cross shape might nave squared or rounded 'arms'; quadrilobe fonts have lobes of varying lengths. In addition, two shapes might be combined in a single font. Examples: a font of o n e form at the rim might have a different form at the bottom; a quadrilobe might be set within a circle; a cross might be inscribed with a circle. Examples of all of these shapes and variations will be given in the following chapter. Baptisteries as well as fonts reflect a variety of shapes and complexity. In some, the u p p e r level of the building differs from its g r o u n d plan. In others, the interior differs in plan f r o m the exterior. Also, in their various shapes 1 , some baptisteries had single apses, s o m e had niches of rectangular a n d / o r semicircular shape, some had ambulatories, some had columns with arcades, some had columns supporting ciboria (canopies) over the fonts, and so on. W h e n considering the shapes of fonts vis-a-vis tne baptisteries in which they were placed, the symbolic possibilities and therefore multivalent understandings of baptism are both rich and complex. ARCHITECTURAL ANTECEDENTS

Ancient baptisteries and fonts had architectural antecedents in the R o m a n world. 2 The rectangular font at Dura-Europos resembled both basins in the Roman baths in the same town 3 and R o m a n (as well as Syrian) tombs. 4 Some early fonts were built over baths, convenient because both the water source and drain would be in place. Some baptisteries and fonts in the fourth century, including at the Lateran in Rome 5 , seem to have been modelled after baths. But why? Was it because of the understanding of baptism as bathing, or was it simply because the baths suggested a practical way to construct a facility for a large volume of water? T he rationale of the designers is not known. 1 lowever, it does seem that Roman public bathing practices influenced to some degree early Christian baptismal practices, and thus it is not surprising that this culture would also have influenced baptismal architecture. 6 While the first stage of the Lateran baptistery in Rome was influenced by bath architecture 7 , the other most important ancient baptistery in the West, in Milan, was influenced instead by burial places, specifically by imperial mausolea— buildings for the burial of members of the imperial family. 8 Once again, however, what is not known is why the baptistery was built on the octagonal plan of a ' For plans, see Khatchatrian (1962); for a typology of shapes, see Khatchatrian (1982). See Krautheimer (1969); Krautheimer (1980), p.50; Khatchatrian (1982); Mirahella Roberti (1984); Fete; Swift; and Stauffer. 'Cultural Settings of Architecture for Baptism in the Early Church'. 3 Kraeling, p.26. See also Krautheimer (1969). p. 132. 4 Hopkins, pp.249ff. 5 See chapter 3. 6 Fête. 7 Fête. 8 Mirahella Roberti (1984). 2

Baptismal Space

/5

nearby mausoleum. S o m e scholars have been quick to say that it was to give architectural expression to the paschal understanding of baptism, and that therefore using tne plan of a burial edifice was only natural. But it is also possible that the octagonal plan was simply a good structural design for both types of centralized space. CANOPIES AND COVERS

In the early Christian penod, fonts were quite often surmounted by a dome-type canopy, commonly termed a ciborium, T h e y were free-standing, supported ny columns (usually numbering between f o u r a n d twelve). S o m e of the ciboria may have been decorated with mosaic. In the late medieval period, many fonts were once again surmounted by canopies, often as a means of giving visual prominence to the font. Unfortunately, the canopies rather than tne water in the font became the primary visual symbol of Baptism. Sometimes the canopies were so monumental that the fonts themselves were barely noticeable. Actual font covers originated in the thirteenth century. T h e medieval people had begun to steal the consecrated water in fonts to use for witchcraft and black magic. A canon law was enacted requiring locked covers on fonts. Originally the covers were flat, but eventually they were recognized for their decorative possibilities, and they took on monumental shapes of their own. 1

1

See Bond, p a n IV.

¡6

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

3. Early Christian Fonts In the last chapter a brief survey of the history of fonts was given. In the present chapter examples f r o m this history in the West will be described. Primary attention will be given to early Christian fonts (third to eighth centuries) in Italy, France, and Tunisia, with a few also from Switzerland. S o m e have been excavated and restored, while others need re-excavation. W h e r e possible, measurements are those taken by the a u t h o r in situ. For fonts in which damage or the need for re-excavation precludes such measurements (especially for depths), dimensions have been drawn from excavation reports or other sources. T h e early Christian fonts described here are organized by shape, in two types of semi-chronological order. First, the shapes themselves are presented in approximate chronological order according to when they first appeared; for example, the rectangular shape is the oldest, while the q u a d n l o b e is relatively late. Second, within the sections by shape, the fonts are presented in relative chronological order. It should be noted, however, that it is often not possible to provide precise dates, even by century. In many cases, there is no determinative archaeological evidence for dating, and dates are contested for a n u m b e r of fonts. Early Christian fonts which were transformed over the years f r o m o n e shape into a n o t h e r are included after the section on 'other shapes'. These transformations are often quite interesting, even when they sometimes entailed reducing the size of the font. Several examples: The original rectangular font in Geneva, Switzerland, was soon transformed into an octagonal shape. T h e early hexagonal font in the church of Servus in Sbeitla, Tunisia, was later m a d e into a smaller quadrilobe. A circular font in Aosta, Italy, was m a d e into a cruciform pool, and then into an octagon. T h e symbolism of the various shapes is briefly discussed in each section. However, Richard Krautheimer's caution a b o u t over-interpretation should be noted: '. . . the symbolical significance is something which merely accompanied the particular form which was chosen for the structure. It accompanied it as a more or less uncertain connotation which was only dimly visible and whose specific interpretation was not pecessarily agreed upon. Yet as a connotation it was nearly always coupled with the pattern which had been chosen. Its very vagueness explains the variety of interpretations given to one and the same form either by one or by different authors.' 1 RECTANGULAR FONTS

As already noted, the rectangle is the most ancient font shape; the earliest example is mid-third century. The rectangle was the c o m m o n shape of ancient sarcophagi and burial niches, and it remains the shape of contemporary coffins 1

K r a u t h e i m e r (1969), p. 122.

Early Christian Fonts

17

in the twentieth century. Rectangular fonts have thus often been interpreted with reference to baptism as burial with Christ (Romans 6.4; Galatians 2.20a; Colossians 3.3).1 While the rectangle was the c o m m o n form-for fonts in the third and fourth centuries, most of t n e m have been destroyed over the years. Only a few of the most ancient ones remain.

Dura-Europos, Syria This mid-third-century font, extremely important because it is the oldest to be found by archaeologists, was in a house church in which one room (also approximately rectangular) had been transformed into a baptistery. T h e font was installed against the west wall of the room. As noted in the last chapter, this tubtype font with its niche resembled both Roman and Syrian tombs, and the way it was constructed matched that of basins in R o m a n baths in Dura. 2 The font was an irregular rectangle measuring 1.63 metres long, with a slightly varying width of approximately 1 metre; it was about .95 metres deep. 3 Faced in white waterproof plaster, it was not connected to a water source, and no drain was f o u n d by excavators. Ledges within the font permitted the candidate to sit, bend over, and be baptized by immersion or pouring. 4 A canopy, supported by two columns and two pilasters, s u r m o u n t e d the font. Painted blue and studded with white stars, the canopy vault resembled the sky; the ceiling of the baptistery was also painted in this manner. T h e wall above the font contained a painted scene of a shepherd with sheep. Other walls in the baptistery contained paintings of other narrative biblical scenes 5 , including the healing of the paralytic. Adam and Eve, the walking on water, a garden scene (perhaps Paradise?), the w o m a n at the well, David and Goliath, and a sequence of resurrection scenes.

San Ponziano Catacomb, Rome, Italy This third-century catacomb includes, in a low level, what undoubtedly was a baptismal pool, variously dated f r o m the fifth to the eighth centuries. It served a small c o m m u n i t y outside the walls of Rome. 6 W h e n it was in use, the pool was somewhat less than 2 metres long and a b o u t 1 metre wide, with a depth of about 1 metre. 7 Fed by a spring or an underground stream, the baptistery nas been greatly damaged by heavily infiltrating water 8 , and can no longer be measured safely. 1 2 5 4 5 6

7 8

For example. Davies (1962), p.19, See chapter 2 section on architectural antecedents. Kraeling, p.26. Kraeling, pp. 27, 145, and 148. For details, see Kraeling, pp. 40-88. U m b e r t o M. Fasola. secretary of the Pontifical Commission on Sacred Archaeology, in personal letter to the author, 27 December 1984. See also P. Testini, Anheologia Cristiana (Desclee, Rome), p. 190. Varying dimensions are given in Cote, p.152; and Rogers, p.335. For drawings of the baptistery prior to flooding damage, see DACL (Tome 2, Pt. 1), column 407; Brown, p.46; Bond, p.6; and Cote, frontispiece.

18

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modern

On the upper rear wall o f the font was a fresco (now destroyed by the rising water) o f a large cross. O v e r t h e font was a fresco o f the baptism o f Christ, showing him in nearly waist-deep water; on the side are an angel and a deer. T h e latter is presumed to be a reference to the catechumen's thirsting for God, just as 'a deer longs for flowing streams' (Psalm 42.1-2).

Other Rectangular Fonts

Stage 1 o f font I in Aquileia, Italy (see Illustration 9, page 42); stage 1 o f font I in Geneva, Switzerland; and stage 2 of the Zurzach, Switzerland, font were rectangular; see below in section on 'Fonts Transformed'. CIRCULAR

FONTS

Round fonts, which in the West originated in fourth-century Rome, were more c o m m o n in the East than the West. In North Africa, there is more archaeological evidence o f circular fonts constructed in what is now Algeria than in what is now Tunisia. There have been various symbolic interpretations of the circle in Christianity 1 , but none of these explanations is as straightforward as, for example, the deathresurrection symbolism of the cruciform shape. Circular fonts may simply have derived from circular basins in Roman baths.

Lateran Baptistery, Rome, Italy

T h e baptistery at the Basilica o f St. J o h n Lateran, the cathedral of Rome, has a very complex history. 2 From the first century, the site held a house which was then made into a domestic bathing facility. Eventually a circular room was constructed with a circular pool in the centre. In the early fourth century the Emperor Constantine gave the property to the bishop o f Rome, who adapted the circular room into the first baptistery in the city. T h e form o f the baptistery and its earliest circular font/pool is very similar to that o f the round frigidaria (cold baths) o f the Stabian and Forum Baths in nearby Pompeii. The extraordinarily large interior o f the earliest baptistery was nearly 19 metres in diameter and about 18 metres high. T h e circular baptismal pool was 8.50 metres in diameter, and was sunken about I metre into the floor. It probably contained three steps. Based on Roman bathing practice, it is likely to have been filled with water to the second step. Literary evidence (for which there is, unfortunately, neither archaeological proof nor rebuttal) indicates that the pool was covered with silver, and that water was supplied through seven silver stags (said to weigh about 36 kilograms each) and a

1

Including J. G . Davies' interpretation of r o u n d fonts as reflecting the w o m b o f rebirth;

(1962), pp.21-22. krautheimer, in contrast, citcs ancient authors' interpretation of the

circle as a s y m b o l o f virtue (Augustine), and of t h e Church ( C a n d i d u s ) ;

p. 121.

2

(1969).

I h e a u t h o r is i n d e b t e d t o J o s e p h N. Fête tor his detailed and w e l l - d o c u m e n t e d s u m m a r y in T h e Cultural B a c k g r o u n d o f the R o m a n Ritual of Baptism' ( u n p u b l i s h e d thesis, Yale University Divinity S c h o o l . 1981).

Early Christian

Fonts

19

gold lamb (about 13 kilograms) which were on the rim. T h e water source was a nearby aqueduct, and the water may have been heated before pouring into the font. Later in the fourth century the baptistery was reconstructed as an octagon, but the font remained circular. Under Sixtus III (432-440), eight pillars with an architrave were installed around the font, creating an ambulatory. 1 T h e architrave carried an inscription reflecting baptism as birth and bath: 'The city, a people to be consecrated, here springs into being from fruitful seed: which the Spirit brings forth from impregnated waters. Be dipped in the sacred stream, O sinner called to purity: whom the water will receive old, but bring forth new. There is no distinction among those born again, whom one font, one Spirit, one faith make one. From her virginal w o m b M o t h e r Church gives birth in the stream to her children, whom she conceives through the breath o f God. Wouldst thou be pure, cleanse thyself in this bath, whether thou art oppressed by original sin or by thine own guilt. This is the fountain o f life, which purges the wnole world, taking its course from the wound o f Christ. H o p e for the Kingdom o f Heaven, ye who are reborn in this font; the blessed life does not accept those who are bom only once. Let not the number or the kind o f his sins frighten anyone; born o f this stream he will be holy.' 2

Font I, Orthodox Baptistery, Ravenna, Italy

Dating to the first half o f the fifth century, this octagonal baptistery (which some believe to have been constructed over a Roman bath) is one o f the most famous extant edifices from the early Christian world, even though the font which is now visible dates only to about the twelfth century. It is also known as the Neonian baptistery, after Bishop Neon (451-475), under whom the decoration was installed. T h e baptistery and its vast mosaic decoration have received much attention by art historians. 3 T h e dome was built about fifty years after the baptistery itself; earlier, it probably had a wooden roof. 4 The mosaic in the dome shows the twelve apostles radiating from a scene of the baptism o f Christ; the latter was heavilv restored in both the fourteenth and nineteenth centuries, and the mode o f the baptism may have been altered. T h e original floor o f the baptistery was three metres below the present floor. T h e earliest font was internally circular 5 , and it measured about 2.7 metres in 1

Kor a d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h e S i s t i n e r e n o v a t i o n , see K r a u t h e i m e r ( 1 9 8 0 ) , p p . 4 9 - 5 0 .

2

T r a n s l a t i o n in U n d e r w o o d , p . 5 5 ; s e c also his a n a l y s i s o f t h e i n s c r i p t i o n , p p . 5 5 - 6 1 . I n c l u d i n g K o s t o f , Van Dael, a n d W h a r t o n .

5 4 s

S e e K o s t o f , p,41; a n d K r a u t h e i m e r ( 1 9 8 6 ) , p. 176. K o s t o f , p p . 3 6 a n d 140; see also K h a t c h a t r i a n ( 1 9 6 2 ) . fig. 3 3 9 .

20

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

diameter. 1 .t has been said that this torn was built over a b i s h o p ' s t o m b 2 T h e medieval octagonal f o n t which is n o w visible was built on t h e f o u n d a t i o n s of t h e original circular f o n t

Mustis, Tunisia (Illustration 1) N o r t h - e a s t of t h e present-day t o w n of El Krib, t h e M u s t i s ruins include a Byzantine basilica and baptistery. T h e essentially quadrilateral baptistery is on t h e west side of the apse and c o n t a i n s a well-preserved circular f o n t p r o b a b l y f r o m t h e sixth century. T h e i n - g r o u n d circular f o n t is a p p r o x i m a t e l y 1 m e t r e d e e p a n d c o n t a i n s t w o steps. T h e drain is intact. Partway u p t h e apse wall, a very s h o r t distance f r o m t h e font, is a large circular s t o n e cistern, whicn m a y s o m e h o w have s u p p l i e d w a t e r to t h e font.

Illustration I — Mustis.

1 2

Wharton, p.363 Kostof, p 6 Early Christian

Fonts

21

Other Circular Fonts Stage 1 of font I, and stage 2 of font II, both in Aosta, Italy; and stage 2 of font I in Aquileia, Italy, were round; see below in the section on 'Fonts Transformed". OCTAGONAL FONTS

Dating to the early fourth century, the eight-sided form is one of the most ancient in the West for fonts as well as for baptisteries. Octagonal fonts were built frequently in Europe (especially in Italy and France), but they are not known in North Africa (nor in the East). Medieval numerology has given rise to much attention to the symbolism of the n u m b e r eight, but it received symbolic interpretation also in the early Christian period. 1 The predominant reference is to the Eighth Day, the day of Christ's Resurrection, the eschatological dawning of the new age whicn is entered in baptism. Thus, baptism is understood as resurrection with and new life in Christ (Romans 6.4b, 9-11; Colossians 3.1). San Stefano alle Fonti, Milan, Italy This earliest baptistery in Milan dates to the first third of the fourth century. Its font is the most ancient octagonal font discovered by archaeologists; thus it is effectively the prototype for the numerous octagonal fonts in the West. It may have been where Ambrose was baptized in A.D. 374.2 This baptistery was located to the north-east of (but was not attached to) the apse of the Basilica Vetus, also known as the church of Santa Maria Maggiore, over which the present Duomo (cathedral) was later constructed. The font excavation is located below the sacristy of the Duomo, but it is entered from the exterior. The font is an irregular octagon, measuring approximately 3.70 metres across, with sides between about 1.2S and 1.50 metres long. A water channel and drain are in place. A ledge on at least five of the interior sides of the font may have served as a step (on the other sides, destruction precludes knowing whether there was a ledge). San Giovanni alle Fonti, Milan, Italy (Illustration 2) C o m m o n l y known as the Ambrosian Baptistery, this octagonal baptistery with its octagonal font was probably constructed in A.D. 379-381 3, while Ambrose was bishop. 4 It was located to the south-east of (but was detached from) the apse of the Basilica Nova, also known as the cathedral of Santa léela. Most scholars believe this baptistery to be the site of Augustine's baptism by Ambrose at the Easter Vigil, 24 April 387.5 1

S e e K r a u t h e i m e r (1969), p p . 149-150: D o l g e r , p p . 1 5 3 - 1 8 7 ; a n d U n d e r w o o d , pp.80-89. A m b r o s e was elected bishop, baptized, o r d a i n e d a presbyter, and consecrated bishop w i t h i n a t w o - w e e k p e r i o d in late 374. 3 A c c o r d i n g to its excavator, M a r i o M i r a b e l l a Roberti, in a p e r s o n a l c o n v e r s a t i o n in M i l a n in 1985. K r a u t h e i m e r , h o w e v e r , b e l i e v e s t h a t t h e b a p t i s t e r y was m o r e p r o b a b l y built a b o u t A.D. 350, a n d o n l y d e c o r a t e d by A m b r o s e ; (1986), p.480. f o o t n o t e 18,' * H i s c o n s e c r a t i o n as b i s h o p of M i l a n was o n 7 D e c e m b e r 374. ' See M i r a b e l l a R o b e r t i a n d Paredi. 2

22

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

The fourth-century cathedral a n d baptistery were largely destroyed in the sixteenth century, although parts of the lower baptistery walls and m u c h of the structure of the font remain T h e excavation is entered by steps at the rear of the Duomo T h e baptistery was probably modelled after the octagonal imperial mausoleum of Maximian (built in the late third century), within the fortress of San Vittore al Corso in Milan. 1 it is similar to the m a u s o l e u m of Sant' Aquilino, attached to the imperial basilica of San Lorenzo. 2 T h e exterior of the baptistery is 19.30 metres in diameter, and is constructed of brick. T h e interior was a d o m e d central space with walls of alternating rectangular and semi-circular niches. 3 Eight large c o l u m n s stood at the perimeter of the room, between the niches. T h e p a v e m e n t of the baptistery was a geometric design in black and white marble 4 At least s o m e of the interior walls were painted, and there was a gold and polychromatic d o m e mosaic 5 but unfortunately the design can no longer be determined.

I l l u s t r a t i o n 2 — San G i o v a n n i , M i l a n . ' Sec M i r a b e l l a R o b e r t ) (1984); a n d M i r a b e l ! R o b e r t i a n d Paredi. S a n t ' A q u i l i n o itself w a s a l s o m o d e l l e d a l t e r t h e m a u s o l e u m o f M a x i m i a n . W h i l e t h e latt e r is n o l o n g e r e x t a n t , S a n t ' A q u i l i n o c a n be s e e n t o d a y a n d g i v e s a r e a s o n a b l e idea o f h o w the Ambrosian baptistery probably looked. 3 This b a p t i s t e r y is g e n e r a l l y a c c e p t e d as t h e first o c t a g o n a l n i c h e d b a p t i s t e r y , a n d it is b e l i e v e d to h a v e s e r v e d as t h e p r o t o t y p e f o r m a n y s i m i l a r b a p t i s t e r i e s in t h e fifth century, e s p e c i a l l y in w h a t a r e n o w n o r t h e r n Italy, P r o v e n c e , a n d Istria. 4 For d e t a i l e d p l a n , see M i r a b e l l a R o b e r t ! a n d P a r e d i , f o l l o w i n g p.22. 5 S o m e of t h e t e s s e r a e of v a r i o u s c o l o u r s a n d s h a p e s a r e o n d i s p l a y a d j a c e n t to t h e baptistery. 2

Early Christian louts

23

The baptistery was entered by a d o o r in one of the rectangular niches, and exited directly opposite. The in-ground octagonal font is more than 5 metres across, and the eight sides are each about 2.10 metres long. It was about .80 metres deep. 1 There were three steps on seven of the sides; no step existed on the eighth side, where the bishop stood to speak the baptismal formula. The font was completely faced in white Greek marble. T h e incoming water pipe and the drain, f o u n d in the excavation, are on two contiguous sides. T h e water was apparently supplied by a cistern. An eightdistich inscription 2 , perhaps from around the bottom of the dome, is f a m o u s for its emphasis on the octagonal shape of the baptistery and pool, and thus of the primary paschal meaning of baptism: 'This temple of eight niches was built for holy use; an octagonal font is worthy of this gift. It was fitting that on this n u m b e r the hall of holy baptism was built, by which true salvation has returned to the people in the light of Christ rising again. For he w h o was freed f r o m the prison of death frees the dead from their tombs, frees f r o m every stain of guilt those w h o confess their sins, and washes them in the stream of the purifying font. May they come quickly to this place. Let those w h o want to discard the faults of a shameful life here wash their hearts and bear pure breasts. Even though in darkness, may one dare to approach, for one will depart shining whiter than snow. T h e holy ones hasten to this place because no o n e just is able to shun the waters. In these Iwaters] is the reign and purpose of God, and the glory of [God's] justice. For w h a t is more divine than this, that in an instant the sin of a people falls away?' 3 T h e understanding of baptism as a combination of burial and resurrection with Christ, and as cleansing from sin and guilt, is reflected also in the baptismal homilies of Ambrose. 4 It is significant also that Ambrose spoke of the font as a grave 5 and a t o m b 6 ; perhaps he had in mind the imperial m a u s o l e u m after which the baptistery was modelled. 1 2

3

4

5 6

Mirabella Roberti and Paredi. p.19. I'he inscription is n o w preserved only in a ninth-century codex. T h e inscription is often attributed to Ambrose, but its a u t h o r s h i p is not really known. See Latin text and detailed t r e a t m e n t in Dolger. T h e a u t h o r is indebted to Edward Yarnold and Samuel Torvcnd for assistance with this translation. For examples, see De Sacramentis 1:12. 11.20 and 23. 111:2, De Mysteriis III: 11, 14:21.

De Sacramentis IF 19. De Sacramentn 111:1.

24

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modern

Ambrose baptized by triple immersion 1 but it is not known w h e t h e r he meant immersion (in which tne body is only partly in the water) or, rather, submersion (in which the entire body is u n d e r the water). Whatever m e t h o d he used, his interpretation was paschal, consonant with the practice of baptizing at the paschal vigil on Easter eve. While it is known that thepedilavium (post-baptismal footwashing) was practised in Milan 2 , no archaeological evidence has indicated where it took place.

Lyon, France T h e baptistery of St. Stephen, a rectangular building with a small apse, is outside the north wall of the present cathedral. It was heated by a hypocaust. 3 T h e octagonal in-ground font 4 , preserved and partially reconstructed, dates to the late fourth century and was in use through tne eighth. 5 In its original form, the exterior of the font measured 3.66 metres across. 6 Subsequently the interior of the f o n t was reduced in size, but it remained octagonal. It is less than a metre deep. T h e water channel and drain pipe were f o u n d in the excavation. T h e font was, at least in some of its stages, covered by a ciborium, supported by eight columns.

Font II, Geneva, Switzerland

In t h e fifth century the baptistery 7 in G e n e v a was doubled in size, its apse greatly enlarged, and a second font was constructed. This new font was to the west of the earlier font, and overlapping it on one side. 8 A column was placed at each corner of the new in-ground octagonal font, presumably to s u p p o r t an architrave and perhaps a ciborium. T h e font was originally 2.50 metres across. T h e water was fed through a w o o d pipe from a deep well some distance away, and drained out the bottom of the font. 9 In the sixth and seventh centuries the interior of the font was twice reduced in size—first to 1.80 metres across, and then to 1.20 metres across 1 0 —but the octagonal shape was retained (although in its smallest form it is nearly circular in appearance). T h e depth of the final stage is almost .50 metres; the depths of the earlier stages are not known. T h e first two forms of the font were revetted in white marble. However, the third form was faced with stucco which was not waterproof; therefore it is pres u m e d that immersion was no longer practised in Geneva by the late sixth century. 1 1 1

De Sacramentis 11:20 De Sacramentis 111:4-7. 3 Khatchatrian (1982), p. 115. 4 There may have heen a m o r e primitive font in I,von, but no traces remain. ! Reynaud (1986), p.101. 6 Reynaud (1986), p. 101; see plans and reconstruction, pp.100, 102-103. 7 See below, the section on 'Fonts Transformed", for information on font I and its baptistery. 8 See Bonnet (1986), site plan inside f r o n t cover, and pp.24-37. 9 T h e pine, drain, and well are extant and visible in the excavation u n d e r the old San Pierre cathedral. 10 Bonnet (1980), p. 183. II See Bonnet (1986), p.36; and (1980). p. 183. I

Early Christian Fonts

25

C a s t e l s e p r i o , Italy In t h e f i f t n c e n t u r y , a c h u r c h w a s c o n s t r u c t e d in this n o r t h - e a s t e r n Italian t o w n , with an o c t a g o n a l apsidal b a p t i s t e r y 1 a t t a c h e d to t h e n o r t h side of t h e a p s e of the c h u r c h . T h e baptistery is c o n n e c t e d to t h e n o r t h aisle of t h e c h u r c h via a s h o r t corridor. T h e small o c t a g o n a l i n - g r o u n d f o n t has sides of a b o u t .90 m e t r e s e a c h ; internally it is a b o u t 1 m e t r e across. It was less t h a n 1 m e t r e d e e p . J u s t w e s t of t h e f o n t is a u n i q u e circular vessel w h i c h has b e e n t h e s u b j e c t of m a n y theories. S o m e have i n t e r p r e t e d it as a s e c o n d f o n t , b u t it m a y s i m p l y have b e e n a cistern. Fr6jus, F r a n c e (Illustration 3) P r o b a b l y early in t h e fifth c e n t u r y , a baptistery w a s built h e r e with a plan w h i c h was s q u a r e on t h e exterior, a n d o c t a g o n a l o n t h e interior. T h e interior i n c l u d e d a l t e r n a t i n g s e m i c i r c u l a r a n d r e c t a n g u l a r n i c h e s (similar in plan on t h e interior, b u t n o t t h e exterior, to b a p t i s t e r y [I in M i l a n ) . T h e o c t a g o n a l f o n t is a b o u t 1.35 m e t r e s across a t t h e t o p a n d a b o u t .80 m e t r e s d e e p ; t h e circular b o t t o m level is a b o u t .90 m e t r e s in d i a m e t e r . It w a s r e v e t t e d w i t h m a r b l e , a n d c o n t a i n e d o n e step. A l o w p a r a p e t wall, in o c t a g o n a l s h a p e a n d p r e s e n t l y a b o u t .35 m e t r e s high, s u r r o u n d e d t n e f o n t o n s e v e n sides. O n t h e

Illustration 3 — Frqus. 1

See Mirabella Roberti (1982)

26

On Baptismal

Fonts. Ancient

and

Modern

eighth side the parapet opened, apparently to admit the candidates to the water. T h e angles of the parapet were buttressed with bases and columns which may have supported a ciborium. To the south of the font is a second hole (unique in France) in the baptistery pavement, in which there is a terra cotta bowl measuring 1.20 metres across at the top, .40 metres across at the bottom, and .38 metres deep. 1 T h o u g h hypothesized as a vessel for the pedilavium, its function is truly unknown. 2

Aix-en-Provence, France Located off the rear right aisle of the present Cathedral of St.- Saveur, this fifthcentury baptistery is square on the exterior, and effectively octagonal on the interior. Eight columns surrounding the font form an ambulatory. T h e octagonal font is a b o u t 1.60 metres across and .70 metres deep. N o steps remain. An apparent water channel and drain are visible.

Riez, France This relatively small baptistery is an octagonal space set within a square exterior. It contains f o u r semicircular niches, and there were doors on opposing sides (without niches). Probably dating from the fifth century, the exterior was later badly restored. 3 The font, now partially destroyed, was 1.25 metres across and .43 metres deep; a water channel was discovered. 4

Riva San Vitale, Switzerland

Dating to about the year A.D. 500 s , this baptistery is square on the exterior (at ground level) but octagonal with niches on the interior. T h e in-ground font is octagonal. In the medieval period, a circular aboveground font was built over the original pool; they are approximately the same diameter. 6 Presumably the first font was used for baptizing adults, and the second tor infants.

'Font III,' Geneva, Switzerland Approximately eight metres to the north-east of font II, another octagonal pool was constructed in the sixth or seventh century, although it appears that font 11 remained in use. T h e new pool was located in a new rectangular room ad|acent to the new. enlarged apse of the 'north cathedral'. This pool is 2 metres across; its depth is not known. It was built over a well, into which it apparently drained. T h e purpose of this pool is not known. It has sometimes been termed a font, although its excavator has hypothesized that it might have been used for prebaptismal bathing. 7 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

G o e t t e l m a n n , p.45. Février (1981), p.29. T h e b a p t i s t e r y is n o w u s e d as a d i s p l a y area f o r a r c h a e o l o g i c a l r e m a i n s . D a v i d - R o y , p.57. K r a u t h e i m c r (1986). p. 177. See p h o t o in B u h l e r (1986), tig. 7 B o n n e t (1980), p. 184.

Early Christian Fonts

27

Varese, Italy This northern kalian site is unique for having three fonts, all visible, built sequentially on top of each o t h e r d u r i n g a ten-century period, 1 T h e earliest font, which was octagonal, was built in the ground in the seventh century, and was probably used for adult immersion. Then, in the twelfth or thirteenth century, an above-ground octagonal font was built on the top of the earlier pool, and used for infant immersion or submersion. T h e exterior sides of this second font are decorated witii Romanesque sculpture. Finally, in the Baroque period, in the seventeenth or eighteenth century, a tiny covered single-pedestal font was placed inside the Romanesque font. Only affusion oraspersion would have been possible in this small Baroque font. This one site, therefore, provides a good visual summary of the decline from paleo-Christian baptismal pools to the Baroque minimalism of tiny m o n o p o d font!.. Cividale, Italy (Illustration 4) Now displayed in a room off the south aisle of the Duomo, this octagonal aboveground font was originally in an octagonal baptistery (destroyed in the seventeenth century). Constructed of marble in the eighth century, the font still gives the visual impression of a pool, even though it was not in the ground, ana it is

I l l u s t r a t i o n 4 — Cividale. 1

S e e p h o t o in C o l o m b o a n d G a r a n c i n i , p.7.

28

On Baptismal fonts: Ancient and

Modern

reported to have been used for the immersion (and perhaps submersion? 1 ) of adults in the eighth century. Eight slender columns are mounted on the rim o f the font, supporting a decorated arcade; at one time there was probably a canopy. The eight sides of the font measure about 1.25 metres each. Internally, the font is 1.30 metres across at the bottom, and about 2 metres across at the top. It is approximately 1.20 metres deep. There are two internal steps (or three, if the rim is counted). Originally there were three external steps on one of the sides, so that an adult could enter the water. Early Lombard Romanesque reliefs adorn the remaining seven external sides, as well as the arches over the colonnade. Among the figures on the arches are peacocks drinking water and eating grapes, lambs, vines, fish, and deer. On one of the side panels of the font are symbols of the four evangelists. Other Octagonal Fonts Stage 2 of font I in Geneva, Switzerland; and stage 3 o f font I, and stage 1 o f font II in Aosta, Italy, were all octagonal. See below in the section on 'Fonts Transformed'. HEXAGONAL FONTS

The six-sided form for fonts began to appear in Europe in the fifth century and within the same century also in North Africa. I lexagonal fonts were especially popular in northern Italy and the adjacent Adriatic area, as well as in what is now Tunisia. The usual interpretation is that the number six is a symbolic reference to the sixth day of the week, Friday, the day on which Christ was crucified and died. Thus, hexagonal fonts would seem to refer to baptism as being united with Christ in his death (Romans 6.3, 5a, 6; Galatians 2.20a; Colossians 3.3). Another interpretation was that the hexagon symbolized the Old Adam, created on the sixth day.2 Font II, Aquileia, Italy The very important paleo-Christian site 3 in this north-eastern Italian town is extremely complex. The baptistery located to the west o f the present church is undergoing further excavation at the time o f writing, and conclusions on the three fonts which are 'stacked' on top of each other in the baptistery must await ublication of this further work by archaeologists. However, it appears that the aptistery, probably from the fifth century, is an octagon (with four semi-circular niches) on the interior, in an exterior which is square at the lower level and octagonal at the upper. The fonts were hexagonal. (Regarding the hexagonaloctagonal symbolism, see below, on nearby Grado.) 1 1 3

See Rogers, p.347. Krautheimer (1969), p. 148, footnote 164. See Mirabella Robert! (1978).

Early Christian Fonts

29

Grado, Italy T h e o c t a g o n a l b a p t i s t e r y 1 w h i c h p r e s e n t l y s t a n d s d e t a c h e d f r o m t h e n o r t h side o f t h e a p s e o f t h e D u o m o (S. E u p h e m i a ) was c o n s t r u c t e d in t h e sixth c e n t u r y , p r o b a b l y o v e r t h e ruins o f an e a r l i e r s q u a r e b a p t i s t e r y . The p r e s e n t s t r u c t u r e , w h i c h is w e l l - p r e s e r v e d , has a p r o j e c t i n g a p s e o n o n e side, o p p o s i t e t h e entrance. The o r i g i n a l p a v e m e n t a n d f o n t w e r e b e l o w t h e p r e s e n t f l o o r , as is a l s o t h e c a s e a t R a v e n n a . The original i n - g r o u n d f o n t , like t h e p r e s e n t m e d i e v a l a b o v e ground replacement, was hexagonal. M u c h a t t e n t i o n has b e e n g i v e n t o t h e c o m b i n a t i o n o f h e x a g o n a l f o n t s in o c t a g o n a l b a p t i s t e r i e s , s u c h as in A q u i l e i a (II), G r a d o , a n d L o m e l l o . 2 U s u a l l y t h e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f t h e h e x a g o n a l - o c t a g o n a l c o m b i n a t i o n is p a s c h a l . 3

Cimiez, France N o w a s e c t i o n o f N i c e , C i m i e z is an a n c i e n t G r e c o - R o m a n site ( C e m e n e l u m ) w h i c h i n c l u d e d t h r e e bath c o m p l e x e s . T h e W e s t e r n b a t h w a s d e s t r o y e d in t h e late f o u r t h c e n t u r y , a n d in t h e fifth c e n t u r y a c a t h e d r a l a n d b a p t i s t e r y w e r e built w i t h i n its r e m a i n s . T h e n e a r l y r e c t a n g u l a r b a p t i s t e r y w a s built o v e r t h e f u r n a c e s , a d j a c e n t t o t h e n o r t h s i d e o f t h e c a t h e d r a l nave. E i g h t c o l u m n s f o r m e d an a m b u l a t o r y in t h e baptistery, a n d t h e f o n t i t s e l f was s u r r o u n d e d by six m o r e columns which supported a ciborium.4 T h e i n - g r o u n d f o n t is h e x a g o n a l at t h e t o p level, a n d r e c t a n g u l a r w i t h i n t h e l o w e r level. T h e h e x a g o n is a b o u t 1 . 6 0 m e t r e s a c r o s s a n d a b o u t .85 m e t r e s d e e p . T h e r e are t w o steps w i t h i n t h e h e x a g o n a l level, a n d t w o m o r e d o w n i n t o t h e rect a n g u l a r level. A c h a n n e l l e a d i n g i n t o t h e t o p o f t h e f o n t may h a v e p r o v i d e d w a t e r , b u t n o drain has b e e n f o u n d .

San Marcello, Rome, Italy This f o n t , w h i c h c a n n o w b e v i e w e d t h r o u g h a plexiglass d o m e f r o m t h e l o b b y o f t h e B a n c o di R o m a w h i c h is a d j a c e n t t o S a n M a r c e l l o C h u r c h , is f r o m t h e fifth c e n t u r y . It is an irregular h e x a g o n , w i t h six s m a l l l o b e s r a d i a t i n g o u t w a r d . I t h a s t w o s t e p s o n t h r e e a d j a c e n t sides. R e v e t t e d in w h i t e m a r b l e , t h e i n t e r i o r o f t h e f o n t is 2 . 5 0 m e t r e s across.

1 See Zovatto (1947-1948) and (1971). T h e same combination existed in Iabarka, Iunisia, and in Porec (Parenzo), on the Istrian peninsula of the former Yugoslavia. 3 For example, Davies wrote 'As he entered the octagonal building, the catechumen was buoyed with hope in the Resurrection of Christ, as he entered the hexagonal font, he knew he was to die with Christ, but as he left the font and stood once more in the eight-sided room he also knew that he was to walk in newness of life' (1962), p.21. While this interpretation is certainly logical, it is not known if this (or any, for that matter) symbolism was intentional on the part of those who designed fonts and baptisteries—or whether it was in the minds o f catechumens and neophytes, or o f those who presided. 4 Benoît, pp.146-7.

2

30

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

C o l o u r Plate 1 — Kélibia.

C o l o u r Plate 4 — Redeemer, C h i m a c u m , WA.

Dermech I, Carthage, Tunisia (Illustration 5) The nearly square peristyle baptistery of this basilical complex 1 is attached to the far wall of the north aisle of the church, and there were two or three doors between the church and the baptistery. The baptistery dates to the fifth or sixth century 2 The peristyle of the baptistery, formed by twelve columns, created an ambulatory Four additional columns probably supported a ciborium over the font The baptistery's pavement was mosaic: large panels intricately decorated with geometric shapes (including many octagons), flowers, and birds.'

Illustration 5 — Dermech I, ( .arthage.

1

2

3

I he church c o m p l e x known as Dermech I is quite close to the ruins o f the huge A n t o n i n e Baths, which sit on the Mediterranean shore o f Carthage ( n o w a suburb ofTunis). T h e n a m e ' D e r m e c h ' is a corruption of thermae, the Latin word for 'baths.' T h e entire site (including baths, basilicas, and what probably were houses) is n o w a national archaeological park. A small longitudinal chapel (perhaps a consignatorium?) is attached to the east side o f the baptistery. Its date is unknown. Only a small portion o f the mosaic remains in situ, and it is badly worn. However, a small panel from the pavement was installed in the Bardo M u s e u m in Tunis, and, interestingly, it includes what appears to be a chalice iramed by an octagon.

Early Christian Fonts

i!

T h e font has always been described and depicted as a hexagon. It does, indeed, have a significant hexagonal form near the top. However, the hexagon is o n e level down from the baptistery pavement; at the level o f the pavement, what appears to be the orifice o f the font is an irregular circle. 1 T h e r e are two steps each on the north-east and south-east sides. 2 T h e font is a b o u t 1 metre deep. At the 'top' hexagonal level, it measures 1.S0 metres across; the b o t t o m o f the pool, which was circular, is .70 metres in diameter. T h e hexagonal sides average .80 metres long. T h e font was revetted in white marble, s o m e o f which is still intact. Water from the font drained below ground into a cistern which is about metres away; the head o f the cistern is at ground level in the north ambulatory o f the baptistery. Although the original excavator reported also a water source 3 , it has not been found in more recent exploration.

Damous el-Karita, Carthage, Tunisia

This site, located outside the old walls o f the city o f Carthage, includes one o f the largest churches (a nave plus eight aisles) o f ancient Tunisia. Unfortunately, confusing ancient overbuilding, as well as prior destructive excavation and, now, thick growth all make the site difficult to understand and to explore. Its date is uncertain, but perhaps fifth century. For such a huge church, the hexagonal font is relatively small. It measures approximately 2.50 metres across, with sides averaging .90 metres long. There are three steps on two non-parallel sides (as at D e r m e c h I). T h e f o n t is too filledin to determine its depth.

Lomello, Italy

Variously dated from the fifth to seventh centuries, this baptistery is octagonal with eight small niches (alternating rectangular and semicircular) radiating out. T h e hexagonal font has been altered at various times. O n the interior is a small semi-circular projection from which, according to Davies, the presbyter could stand to preside at baptisms. 4

Other Hexagonal Fonts

Stage 1 o f the font in the church o f Servus in Sbeitla, Tunisia, was hexagonal. See below, the section on 'Fonts Transformed'.

1

2

3 4

It is a puzzle as to why this shape has not appeared on any plans. Further archaeological work is required before conclusions about it can be drawn. It is. thus, not technically possible at present to determine the shape of the font; following tradition it is here classified as hexagonal. Why the steps were not placed on two opposite (that is. parallel) sides is also a mystery. especially since here that would have put them on an east-west axis. Gauckler, p.15; see also Vaultrin, p.112. Davies (1962), p.69.

12

On Baptismal

Fonts: Ancient

and

Modern

SQUARE FONTS

Relatively few square fonts have been f o u n d , especially in the West. In North Africa, there are ruins of several in what is n o * Algeria, but only two are presently known in Tunisia. In Europe, several have been found in the former Yugoslavia, and one each in Switzerland and Germany, but none in either France or Italy.

Font I, Uppenna, Tunisia The architectural site of U p p e n n a (also known as Henchir Fraga or Henchir Chigarnia) is north of the present-day town of Enfidaville, on Tunisia's east coast. T h e first church which stood on the site, built in the late fourth or early fifth century, included a rectangular baptistery with a square in-ground font 1 approximately 1.40 metres across. It had rwo steps on each side and was over 1 metre deep. There appears to be a drain at the bottom of one side.

Maktar, Tunisia (Illustration 6) T h e basilica of Hildeguns (the name comes from a t o m b found at the entrance to the church), one of several churches in this once-flourishing town, was probably a cathedral. 2 It was destroyed and rebuilt twice, and in its third form included a baptistery. It probably dates to the sixth century.

Illustration 6 — M a k t a r 1 2

See p h o t o s and plans in Duval (¡973), T o m e II, pp 88-94 Duval (1973), T o m e II, p.139.

Early Christian Fonts

33

The church is on an east-westaxis, and the baptistery is within the walls of the church, behind the apse. 1 T h e square baptistery, about 3.70 metres across, itself has a small apse at its east end. The font was built over a cistern. It was covered by a ciborium mounted on four columns. The font measures 1.80 x 1.80 metres and has a step on three of the sides: the fourth (eastern) side does not have a step. It yvas covered with mosaic (which seemed to imitate water), much of which is now gone. The bottom of the font is also destroyed, but the depth was 1.24 metres. 2 Other Square Fonts Stage 1 of the font in Zurzach, Switzerland, was square; see below in the section on 'Fonts Transformed". CRL Cl FORM FONTS

Cross-shaped fonts have an obvious and immediate visual reference to the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Romans 6.3-11). The meaning is bivalent: both death and victory over death, the sixth day and the eighth day combined. Cruciform fonts first appeared in the West in the fifth or sixth century. They were particularly popular in North Africa (as well as in the East). Thuburbo Majus, Tunisia (Illustration 1) In about the fifth century, the southern half of a large pagan temple from the second or third century was transformed into a Christian church. 3 Tne baptistery was placed in the cella (the room in which the statue of the divinity had been displayed) of the former temple. The cellaAiaptistery is nearly square, measuring approximately 6 metres per side. Two doors on the south side give access to/from a columned hall (narthex), and one door (in the baptistery's east wall) connects the baptistery with the north aisle of the small church. The mosaic pavement of the baptistery is no longer intact. The cruciform font, with a circle inscribed at the centre of the top level, measures about 2.60 metres (north-south) by 1.93 metres (east-west). The squared arms of the cross are about .50 metres wide, and each had three steps. 4 The depth of the font cannot be determined without re-excavation, but it was more than 1.10 metres. There is no indication of the water source or drain. 1

2 3

4

The a r r a n g e m e n t is thus similar to that of the church of Vital is in Sbeitla; see below under 'Fonts of other shapes' Duval (1973), Tome II, p.139. For comparative plans of the t e m p l e and church, see Lézine (1968). figure 6. F o r a large detailed plan of the church and baptistery, see Ben Abed-Ben Khader, et al., Thuburbo Majus, Vol. II, Fascicle 2 of Margaret A. Alexander and Mongi F.nnaifer, Corpus des Mosaïques de Tunisie (Tunis: Institut National d'Archéologie et d'Art, 1985), plan 11 ; p h o t o 188 in the same volume shows a fragment of the baptistery pavement mosaic. T h e b o t t o m steps on the northern and southern arms were concave.

M

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

It appears f r o m notches in the northern and southern arms that, at a later stage, s labs w e r e inserted across those arms, e f f e c t i v e l y making the f o n t into rt 1.93 x .75 metre rectangle. 1 T h e hypothesized slabs are not extant.

Illustration 7 — Thuburbo Majus. Bulla R e g i a , T u n i s i a T h e sixth-century f o n t in this double-apsed basilica 2 is in the first bay of the nave, |ust in front o f the west apse. The p a v e m e n t around the f o n t is opus, sectile T h e f o n t was surmounted by a cibonum, supported by f o u r columns. T h e cruciform font measures 2.16 x 2.76 metres, and it is quite deep: 1.45 metres. T h e squared arms o f the cross are about .61 metres w i d e . T h e r e are f o u r sets o f f o u r steps each. A t s o m e point the f o n t was m a d e smaller 3 by inserting marble slabs across t w o o f the arms o f the cross, so that only the resulting rectangle n e e d e d to be filled with water. A m o n g the hypothesized reasons are that there was a water shortage, or that it was d o n e to enable infant baptism m o r e easily. 1

2

3

Such slabs are still in place in the cruciform tout at Bulla Regia; see below. The Bulla font in its rectangular stage was slightly longer and deeper. For an extensive description and analysis of dual-apsed churches in Tunisia, see Duval, Les églises africaines à deux absides, two volumes. The books include many photographs and plans of fonts in the churches he covers, including a plan of the Bulla Regia churches and font (Tome li, page 42). See Duval (1973), Tome II, p.46. Early Christian

Fonts

35

'Carthagenna' Baptistery, Carthage, Tunisia

T h i s site 1 has a large double-apsed church and very large baptistery from the mid-sixth century. T h e baptistery measures about 14 metres per side. Its external plan is square, but it is effectively octagonal on t h e interior, with four radiating niches or alveoles which were probably covered by s e m i d o m e s . 2 T h e floors o f these niches each contained a very large multicolored mosaic scallop shell; the remains o f one can still be seen. An octagonal ciborium supported by eight pil lars s u r m o u n t e d the font. T h e cruciform font, n o w partially destroyed, measures about 2 . 9 0 metres across, with a centre section a b o u t 1.40 metres in diameter. T h e extant arms o f the cross average a b o u t .75 metres wide. The font was a b o u t 1 metre deep, and was revetted in white marble. (It was, thus, larger but shallower than the cruciform font at Bulla Regia.) T h e r e were two o p p o s i n g flights o f steps which, according to the excavator, permitted adults to descend f o r 'total immersion'. 3 T h e r e are cisterns below the baptistery, so it is likely that there was a drain from the font and probably also a water source for it.

El Kantara, Tunisia (Illustration 8)

T h e cruciform El Kantara 4 font is also from the sixth century. It was constructed o f re-used 5 slabs o f white marble. T h e arms o f the cross are rounded, unlike those at T h u b u r b o M a j u s , Bulla Regia, and Carthage. T h e width o f the arms is about .43 metres, and the interior o f the pool is about 2.20 metres each direction. T h e r e are two steps on each o f the four sides. At present the font is only about .50 metres deep.

Font I, Acholla, Tunisia

Another cruciform f o n t with rounded arms is at Acholla (known today as Bou Tria). Regrettably, it is now badly damaged, and two o f the arms o f the cross are c o m p l e t e l y destroyed. Based on what is remaining, the font appears to have been about 1.40 metres across. T h e r e were steps on two sides. T h e depth can no longer be determined. 6 T h e cross-shaped pool seems to have been set within a circular form. 7 1

2 3 4

5 6 7

It is familiarly referred to as the 'Michigan baptistery' because it was excavated by a University of Michigan team under the direction of John Humphrey, or the 'supermarché site' because it is adjacent to the supermarket in Carthage. However, it has been called 'Carthagenna' by Liliane Ennabli (who excavated the church) in her article 'La Basilique de Carthagenna'. The site has a fine small early-Christian museum which includes an exhibit of the method of tubular vaulting which was used in the baptistery. Humphrey, p.167. Humphrey, p.167. 'Total immersion' is the same mode as submersion. It is also known as the Meninx font, which is how it is labelled at the Bardo Museum in Tunis, where it is now displayed. It comes from the Tunisian island of Djerba. In Khatchatrian (1962), it is referred to as Henchir Bour Medes. See also DACL. Yome 11. Part 1, column 417. This re-utilization may account for the bizarre holes and channels in some of the slabs. When examined in 1992, it could be measured down only .43 metres from the rim. See figs. 2 and 3 in Duval (1980).

36

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

Illustration 8 — EI Kantara.

La Skhira, Tunisia This sixth-century rectangular baptistery is attached to a n o t h e r rectangular room behind the west apse of the church.' T h e baptistery p a v e m e n t was decorated with mosaic, part of which is intact. T h e small cruciform pool has r o u n d e d arms which are quite irregular in size. Overall, the pool measures a b o u t 1.60 metres x 1.90 metres, and it is set within an octagonal form. 2 T h e r e were two steps, and the depth of the font was 1 30 metres. 3 T h e font is n o w quite filled in, and there has been considerable d a m a g e to the octagonal form. N o water source or drain was f o u n d . T h e f o n t was surm o u n t e d by a cibonvm supported by four columns.

Other Cruciform Fonts Stage 2 of font I in Aosta, Italy, was cruciform. See below, the section on 'Fonts Transformed.'

1 2

3

S e e plan in D u v a l (1973), T o m e II, p . 2 ? 5 P h o t o g r a p h s o f t h e t h e n - n e w l y e x c a v a t e d f o n t ( w i t h its s t e p s ) w i t h i n t h e o c t a g o n a r e prov i d e d by F e n d r i , p l a t e s XVIII a n d XIX. t e n d r i , p.44.

Early Christian Fonts

37

QLADRILOBE

FONTS

This four-lobed shape developed out of the cruciform shape 1 , of which it is a variation. T h u s the meaning is the same, referring to the death and resurrection of Christ. It is also known as quatrefoil and, in French, as têtraconque. Quadrilobe fonts were c o m m o n in Tunisia as well as in Israel. Kélibia, Tunisia (Colour Plate i) This late sixth-century quadrilobe font 2 and its surrounding pavement, all covered in mosaic decoration, is the most stunning early-Christian discovery in Tunisia. Originally in a baptistery attached to the south of the apse of the church of Felix in Kélibia (ancient Clupea) on the Cap Bon peninsula of north-eastern Tunisia, it is now reinstalled in the Bardo M u s e u m in Tunis. 3 The font is set within a raised, irregular circle, in the middle of a square mosaic floor which is 3.10 metres across. The font itself is 2.10 metres across, and slightly more than 1 metre deep. Ledges within the four lobes served as steps; effectively, there were two steps on each side. No water source or drain was found. 4 In its quadrilobe shape, this font reflects the paschal meaning of Baptism, but its mosaic iconography suggests Baptism as proleptic entry into the abundant life of Paradise. On the bottom of the pool, and in six other places, are monogrammatic crosses flanked by alpha and omega, emblematic of Christ and eternal life. On the vertical walls, at mid-level, are fruit trees (apple, olive, fig, and palm) which seem to grow our of the water. On and above the four lobes are fish and dolphins. 5 In Christian iconography of this period and area, fish often represented tne baptized, born in the waters of the font. The dolphin was a frequent symbol of tne resurrected Christ. One is reminded of what Tertullian had said about baptism: 'We, being little fishes, as Jesus Christ is our great fish, begin our life in the water, and only while we abide in the water are we safe and sound.' 6 The interior corners of the lobes, at the top register, bear lighted candles, perhaps an iconographie reference to baptism as illumination or enlightenment 7 , or maybe symbolic of the Paschal candle. On the upper vertical surfaces 1 2 3 4 5

6

7

Davies (1962), p.22. See Courtois. See Yacoul) (1978). p p . 2 1 5 - 2 2 0 . C o u r t o i s , p. 106. O n t h e l e d g e o r s t e p o f t h e e a s t l o b e is a m o s a i c f i g u r e w h i c h h a s b e e n t h e s u b j e c t o f m u c h d e b a t e . A t f i r s t g l a n c e it l o o k s like a b e e , b u t s e v e r a l s c h o l a r s b e l i e v e it t o b e a. seiche, o r c u t t l e f i s h (a m o l l u s c ) , b e c a u s e it is i d e n t i c a l t o t h o s e s h o w n in m a n y m a r i n e m o s a i c s ot the s a m e area. Those s u p p o r t i n g t h e h o n e y - b e e t h e o r y p o i n t to t h e reference to the b e e in t h e Exultet o f t h e F a s t e r Vigil. F o r a s u m m a r y of t h e d e b a t e , s e e P a l a z z o . F o r a d d i t i o n a l d e s c r i p t i o n s a n d analysis of the mosaic, see the b i b l i o g r a p h y herein for c o m p l e t e citations f o r C o u r t o i s , C i n t a s a n d Duval. Février a n d Poinssot, F é v r i e r s later o p i n i o n ( R A C , 1984), a n d A l e x a n d e r (1 9 8 3 ) . De Baptismo 1; t r a n s l a t i o n in E r n e s t F v a n s (éd.). Tertullian's Homily on Baptism L o n d o n , 1964) pp.4-5. F p h e s i a n s 1.18; H e b r e w s 6 . 4 a n d 10.32; J u s t i n M a r t y r . First Apology 61.

38

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

(SPCK,

o f the f o u r lobes are m o s a i c d e p i c t i o n s o f a dove with an olive branch, N o a h ' s ark between t w o birds, a chalice, and a cross u n d e r a c a n o p y supported by two columns. T h e top o f the circular rim has an inscription regarding the d o n o r and in hono u r o f Cyprian, b i s h o p o f C a r t h a g e three centuries earlier. The f o u r corners o f t h e square p a v e m e n t m o s a i c around t h e font d e p i c t f o u r canthari o r vases o f water, probably a s y m b o l of the f o n t as t h e fountain o f life, o r perhaps s y m b o l i z i n g the f o u r rivers o f Paradise ( G e n e s i s 2.10). S e e m i n g to g r o w o u t o f the vases are grape vines, perhaps a reference to the eucharist as the c u l m i n a t i o n o f w h a t is begun in the waters o f the font.

Jbel Oust, Tunisia An entirely different type o f q u a d n l o b e f o n t was in J b e l Oust. It is essentially a rectangular pool to which, on each side, are attached steps which are r o u n d e d at the t o p level. It dates to the sixth century. T h e baptistery here was constructed in the eel la o f a pagan temple. 1 T h e baptistery o p e n e d o n t o the c o u r t o f the t e m p l e ; the church was built o f f the courtyard on an ad|acent side. Thus the baptistery and church were at a 9 0 - d e g r e e angle, and were not directly attached to each other. T h e f o n t sat directly o v e r a spring o f sulfurous water. ( T h e site was and still is a thermal establishment.) Overall the font m e a s u r e s a b o u t 2 . 1 0 metres by 1.65 metres; its rectangular pool is a p p r o x i m a t e l y .53 by .90 metres. There are three steps each o n two o p p o s i t e sides. T h e depth o f the pool is u n k n o w n , but it was at least .80 metres.

Other Quadrilobe Fonts Stage 2 o f t h e f o n t in the church o f Servus in Sbeitla, Tunisia, was q u a d r i l o b e . S e e below, the section on 'Fonts T r a n s f o r m e d . POLYLOBt

FONTS

This form o f f o n t is essentially circular, with a varying n u m b e r o f small projecting lobes o r alveoli. In Tunisia the n u m b e r of lobes is usually eight, but six and twelve are not u n k n o w n in N o r t h Africa. As a rule they are dated to the sixth century. Polylobe fonts are o n e o f the mysteries of early Christian architecture in North Africa. T h e y are probably unrelated to q u a d r i l o b e fonts, being m o r e likely to carry n u m b e r s y m b o l i s m . 2

Font II, Uppenna, Tunisia P r o b a b l y dating f r o m t h e late sixth century (thus built perhaps t w o centuries later than the lower, square f o n t on this site), this f o n t is circular at the centre, with eight irregular lobes, set within a square structure. 3 N o w q u i t e d a m a g e d as 1 2 J

S e e Duval, Eglise e t t e m p l e en A f r i q u e du N o r d ' , p p . 2 9 0 - 2 9 2 . Duval ( 1 9 8 0 ) , p . 3 4 2 ; see t h i s e n t i r e article f o r v a r i o u s e x p l a n a t i o n s o f p o l y l o b e f o n t s . For plans and p h o t o , see Duval ( 1 9 7 3 ) . Pome II, p p . 8 8 - 9 1

Early Christian Fonts

J9

well as overgrown, its depth is impossible to determine. Overall, the pool measures about 1.75 metres across; the interior circle is only .75 metres in diameter. A few white mosaic tesserae remain on one exterior surface. A drain is visible on the exterior o f its bottom north side. Font II, Acholla, Tunisia Also in poor condition, this in-ground eight-lobed font is set within an irregular circle. The pool measures about 2.10 metres across; the interior round section is 1.30 metres in diameter. The lobes themselves average about .34 metres wide and about the same length. Now completely filled in, its depth is impossible to measure. However, the lobes themselves were reported in 1980 to be an extraordinary .46 metres deep. 1 Hergla, Tunisia The square sixth-century baptistery is behind ruins of the apse of a church on a hill facing the sea, between Hammamet and Sousse. The eight-lobed font measures about 2.55 metres across. Several of the lobes are destroyed, but those that remain average about .60 metres across and .50 metres long. The depth of the font is now impossible to determine. OTHER-SHAPED FONTS

Jucundus, Sbeitla, Tunisia In Sbeitla (ancient Sufetula), Tunisia, are two fonts o f a shape which cannot be described simply. 2 The shape is apparently unique to Sbeitla. Essentially the fonts are rectangles, with bulging exterior sides, and steps on each end. Thus the form is elongated, enabling the neophyte to have a definite sense o f passage through the waters, as wellas, with the several steps on opposite ends, a clear experience of descent and ascent. The Chapel of Jucundus (named for a local bishop), which served as the baptistery 3 , was attached to the north of the Church of Bellator, which no doubt was the first cathedral o f Sbeitla. The church dates to the fourth century, the baptistery in its present excavated form probably to the fifth. The baptistery was rectangular and included a peristyle. The font, now quite damaged, was oriented roughly north-south, had three steps at each end, and appears to have been covered on the interior with white mosaic (some of which remains). Overall, its interior measures approximately

1 2

3

Duval (1980), p.331; see also figs. 4 and 5. Thus, Duval's description o f the J u c u n d u s font: 'Si on ne tient pas c o m p t e des escaliers elle est grosso modo cruciforme, mais dans la branche de la croix qui fait face à l'abside est inscrit un demi-cylindre verticale; tandis que la branche symétrique était coupée à 4 6 cm de hauteur par une banquette qui supportait un demi-cylindre m o n t a n t jusqu'au sommet.' (1971), Tome I, p. 120. See text, plans, and photos in Duval (1971), T o m e I, pp. 106-13 3, 296- 297, and plans III and IV at the end o f the volume; and Duval and Baratte, pp.44-48.

40

On Baptismal

Fonts: Ancient and

Modern

2.90 metres long. The rectangular bottom of the pool measures about 1.45 metres long and .95 metres wide (not including the concave alveoles). It is about 1 metre deep. At approximately mid-level on one side, there is a ledge (see below, about the Vitalis font ledge). At a later time, after the new Church of Vitalis was built (see below), a column was set in the font, to hold a reliquary for Jucundus, and as a base for an altar.1 Vitalis, Sbeitla, Tunisia (Colour Plate 2) The Church of Vitalis was constructed in the late fifth or early sixth century to the west of the earlier cathedral and baptistery. This new cathedral was approximately double the size of the earlier one. The baptisteiy, placed behind the apse, was rectangular with its own small apse.2 The new font was nearly the same shape as the earlier one (Jucundus), but oriented approximately east-west. It was richly decorated in mosaic. Four column bases were built into the rim, no doubt to support a ciborium. Along the north side (just as in the Jucundus font) is a ledge about .60 metres from the bottom; its purpose was apparently simply to take up bulk, reducing the quantity of water necessary in the font. Counting the rim as a top step, there are four steps on each end. The overall interior of the pool measures about 2.95 metres long and 1.10 metres wide. Its rectangular bottom is 1.25 metres long. The depth of the font is 1.16 metres. There is no evidence of the water source or drain. However, a small orifice is visible on the south wall of the font, about 8 centimetres from the bottom; its purpose is not known. Trie mosaic decoration of this font is extraordinary, even given its considerable restoration. The background colour is ecru. The top of the rim contains a dedicatory inscription on the north 'bulge', and a laurel garland around the remainder. Laurel garlands are traditionally understood as symbolic of eternity. In between the sections of garland are rose branches. On both interior sides there is a black Greek cross, perhaps an iconographic reference to baptism as crucifixion and resurrection with Christ. Below the cross on the north side arestylized rosebuds, the flower of Paradise. On the bottom surface of the pool is a monogrammatic cross. Chateauneuf-de-Grasse, France Approximately 1.5 kilometres south of this village is Notre-Dame du Brusc, wnere there are the remains of an irregular seven-sided in-ground font from the sixth or seventh century. 3 It is 1.00 metre across, and about .70 metres deep. There are steps extending out from two opposing sides.

1 2

5

See Duval (1971), T o m e I. pp. 117-119, and 123. See Duval (1971), T ò m e 1, pp.149, 2 7 8 - 2 9 7 , and plan V at the end o f the volume; and Duval and Baratte, pp.49-58. See Khatchatrian (1982), p.l 10.

Early Christian Fonts

41

FONTS

TRANSFORMED

It was noc uncommon in the ancient world for fonts to be 'remodelled' for a variety o f reasons. Sometimes it was done to make the font smaller for easier use with infants. Other times it would seem simply to change the shape.

Font !, Aquileia, Italy (Illustration 9) T h e sunken rectangular font which is now in the crypt o f the extant eleventhcentury church may originally have been a bathtub in the Roman house which stood on the site. 1 If so, this domestic bathtub would have served as the font in the dormís eccksiae (house church) which preceded the twin basilicas. W h e n , in the second decade o f the fourth century, the two parallel basilicas were constructed 2 , the original rectangular font was made round and was incorporated into a hexagonal parapet (low wall) located in a transverse structure connecting the two basilicas. A hypocaust may have heated the baptistery and adjacent areas. In form, although not in placement, this first font in Aquileia is similar to the font at Dura-Europos. 3 T h e rectangular Aquileia font is 1.73 metres long, .84 metres wide, and .94 metres deep (comparable to that at Dura-Europos); there is one step at each end.

Illustration 9 1

Kraelinp, p. 147; and C o r b e t t , p. 106 a n d fig. I

2

Krautheimer (19B6). p.43. Kraeling, p. 147.

3

Aquileia I.

4-2 On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

Font I, Aosta, Italy The first baptistery at the cathedral in this north-west Italian town was located at the rear of the nave. The baptistery was rectangular. The first font was originally built in the fourth or fifth century. Its shape can no longer be determined, because of several later transformations, but it was probably polygonal or round; its interior was at least 2.40 metres in diameter. 1 At a later point in the fifth century, it was made into the unique shape of a cross patee-, the four arms of the cross angled outward. 2 In this shape, it measured nearly 2 metres across, and had two steps. The bottom of the centre section was octagonal, approximately 1 metre across. In the sixth century the font was remodelled into an octagon with two steps on every side; the dimensions remained the same. It is in this form that the font appears today, currently measuring approximately .75 metres deep. Font I, Geneva, Switzerland While the earliest baptistery in this cathedral complex dated to the mid-fourth century, nothing is known of its font. In about A.D. 400, a second baptistery was constructed, adjacent to the first. It was nearly rectangular and had a small, shallow apse. The in-ground font was octagonal on the exterior, but rectangular on the interior. 3 It was revetted with marble. Kight columns surrounded the font, no doubt supporting a ciborium. Servus, Sbeitla, Tunisia The church of Servus 4 may have been the Donatist cathedral in Sbeitla. Its square baptistery, to the north side of the nave, was located in the cella of the temple which existed on the site. In its earliest, fifth-century, stage, the font 5 was an in-ground hexagon approximately 1.75 metres across. Projecting from two of the sides were sets of two steps each. Four columns surrounded the font, probably supporting a ciborium. In the sixth century, a small quadrilobe font was installed inside the earlier hexagonal font. The quadrilobe measures 1.19 metres across, and is .53 metres deep. Both stages of this font can be seen, although very poor restoration has made the original hexagon appear nearly round. Font II, Aosta, Italy In the fifth century a square baptistery 6 was constructed off the north side of the nave of the cathedral. Apparently the earlier baptistery remained in use as well. 1 2 3 4 5 6

Bonnet and Perinetti, p.24. See Bonnet (1989), pp.1418-1421. See Bonner (1986), p.25. fig. 3. See Duval and Baratte, pp.75-78, and Duval, 'Lglise et temple en Afrique du Nord' See plan in Duval (1988), p.9l. See Bonnet and Pennetti, pp.28-30. Early Christian Fonts

43

The font in its first stage was octagonal. In the sixth century it was made into a somewhat smaller circular font, about 1.25 metres across. T h e water source and drain have been discovered. Zurzach, Switzerland In the Kirchlibuck area, to the side of the ruins of a fifth-century church, are the remains of its font. Originally about 1.10 metres square, at some point the font was transformed into a rectangle measuring .90 metres by .50 metres, with a depth of .56 metres. 1 Unfortunately, the font is now completely covered by opaque plastic and cannot be seen. 2 CONCLUSION

The fourth, fifth and sixth centuries in southern Europe and in North Africa saw the construction of hundreds of fonts which in size, shape, and decoration gave witness to the many meanings of baptism. They were, literally, constructed theology. N o t only ao they provide significant evidence for church history, but, perhaps even more importantly, they give models for baptismal renewal in today's church. Both patristic texts and early Christian fonts can be used today to help restore baptism to its central place in Christian life and worship. Knowledge about these ancient fonts is thus crucial for pastors and catechists, liturgiologists and theologians, and church architects and liturgical designers.

1 2

Khatchatrian (1982). p. 121 ; and Buhler (1984), pp.14-15. See p h o t o in Buhler (1986), fig. 6; and Buhler (1984), p. 14.

44

On Baptismal FontsAncient

and Modern

4. Fonts for Today The water of the baptismal font is the water of primeval chaos, the mighty water of the Flood, the deadly water of the Red Sea, and the salvific water of the River Jordan. It is the pure water of divine cleansing, the deep water of death, and the nverof the water of life. By the grace of God, it is the water that drowns and, at the same time, the water that gives birth. An important task of liturgical renewal today is the provision of fonts which can help make these many meanings of baptism unambiguously evident. PRINCIPLES

Four principles serve as the basis for considering the design of fonts for the future: 1. A font serves two functions—the symbolic and the ritual. 2. While baptism is certainly multivalent, its chief meaning is paschal— sharing in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. J. Submersion is a fuller ritual enactment of baptism's meanings than any other mode. 4. Fonts are for the baptism of adults as well as infants. First, a font serves two functions—the symbolic and the ritual The ritual function of a font is the most obvious: it holds the water needed for baptism. It is a container for the earthly element of the primal sacrament, a vessel for a liturgical action. But a font is also a symbol of that sacrament, a visual reminder of the fact that we are baptized. It reminds the faithful ot their identity: sinners who in the waters of baptism are forgiven; children of God who are the body of Christ in the world; and 'little fish' who in the water are given life in Christ, the great Fish. 1 In baptism we are all 'water babies', just as in the euchanst we are blood brothers and sisters. In baptism we are one in the water, and one with and in Jesus Christ. We are all baptized into one body 2 , the one communion of saints. Baptism is the most important, the most radical, and the most consequential event in human life. The water of the font is not only where this event happens— it is also a visual reminder that it has happened. It is both the locus of sacramental action and the symbolic reminder of that action and its meanings. The font should enable the profound meanings of baptism to be enacted ritually. Likewise, its size, shape, location, and iconography should give the font symbolic intensity and evocative richness.

' The fish imagery is that of Tertulhan; see his De Baptismo I (and chapter 1 of this book). 2 Anglican theologian Paul Avis develops this as 'the baptismal paradigm' for ecclesiology and ecumenism in his book Christians in Communion (Liturgical Press, Collegeville, Minnesota, 1990).

Fonts for Today

45

Second, while baptism is certainly multivalent, its chief meaning is paschal—sharing in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. Baptism, of course, has m a n y layers of m e a n i n g , including washing, incorporation, initiation, e n l i g h t e n m e n t , birth, death, burial, a n d resurrection. Perhaps it is because w h e n we t h i n k of w a t e r in everyday life, we t h i n k m o s t o f t e n of bathing, that w e see washing as t h e m o s t o b v i o u s m e a n i n g of b a p t i s m . H o w e v e r , N e w T e s t a m e n t scholar C. F. D. M o u l e has written that: 'in fact Baptism is so m u c h m o r e drastic than this a n d so m u c h m o r e farreaching in its c o n s e q u e n c e s , that t h e N e w ' l e s t a m e n t only s e l d o m uses this m e t a p h o r . Baptism is essentially death a n d burial—not m e r e washing.'1 A n o t h e r N e w l e s t a m e n t scholar, Oscar C u l l m a n n , concurs; h e wrote t h a t ' T h e t e m p o r a l centre of all history, t h e d e a t h and resurrection of Christ, is also t h e centre of t h e history of Baptism.' 2 In t h e sixteenth century, M a r t i n L u t h e r had also e m p h a s i z e d t h e paschal m e a n i n g of baptism: 'It is . . . indeed correct to say that baptism is a washing away of sins, b u t t h e expression is t o o mild and w e a k to bring o u t t h e full significance of baptism, which is rather a s y m b o l of d e a t h a n d resurrection . . . T h e sinner does not so m u c h need to be w a s h e d as h e needs to die, in o r d e r to be wholly r e n e w e d and m a d e a n o t h e r creature, a n d to be c o n f o r m e d to t h e d e a t h a n d resurrection of Christ, with w h o m he dies and rises again t h r o u g h baptism . . . It is far m o r e forceful to say that baptism signifies that w e die in every way a n d rise to eternal life, t h a n to say t h a t it signifies merely t h a t w e are w a s h e d clean of sins.' 3

Third, submersion is a fuller ritual enactment of baptism's meanings than any other mode. 4 Prior to t h e p o s t - R e f o r m a t i o n period, aspersion (sprinkling) was n o t used except for clinical baptism. T h e experience of being sprinkled with a f e w d r o p s of w a t e r d o e s not c o m m u n i c a t e a n y of the layers of b a p t i s m ' s m e a n i n g s — n o t cleansing, n o t birth, certainly not d e a t h a n d burial. Is G o d ' s grace so m i n i m a l that Christians can be satisfied with sprinkling? Nearly t h e s a m e is true of a f f u s i o n (pouring). W h a t is its sign value? It c a n n o t express birth o r d e a t h , a n d it is impossible even to b a t h e with only three h a n d s f u l (or shellsful) of water. I m m e r s i o n , w h e t h e r by p o u r i n g water over t h e head of s o m e o n e w h o is standing or kneeling in water, or by partially lowering an infant i n t o t h e water, suggests baptism's m e a n i n g as bathing. H o w e v e r , i m m e r s i o n is n o t able t o c o m m u n i c a t e either the birth or paschal m e a n i n g s of water. 1

Worship in the New Testament, Part ii (Grove Liturgical Study 12-13, Grove Books, Bramcote, Notts., 1978), p.52. 2 Baptism in the New Testament (SCM Press, London, 1960), Westminster Press edition, p.22. 3 The Babylonian Captivity of the Church, in Abdel Ross Wentz, (ed.), Luther's Works, Volume 36 (Fortress Press, Philadelphia, 1959), p.68. 4 See chapter 1 regarding the various modes of baptism, and especially the difference between immersion and submersion. 46

On Baptismal

Fonts: Ancient

and

Modern

O n l y s u b m e r s i o n — i n which the entire body is c o m p l e t e l y u n d e r the w a t e r — has the sign value o f drowning, o f death, o f burial a n a resurrection with Christ. T h e point is not h o w much water is necessary for baptism to be efficacious, but rather h o w much water it takes for both neophytes and congregations to realize the radical nature o f baptism. Certainly the o m n i p o t e n t G o d can effect salvation when only a few drops o f water are used. However, if the Church is to recover the full and profound significance o f baptism, then baptism m u s t be d o n e in a way that is consistent with its meaning: submersion in a b u n d a n t water. In his Large Catechism, Luther wrote that baptism 'consists o f being dipped into the water, which covers us completely, and being drawn o u t again. T h e s e two parts, being dipped u n d e r the water and emerging from it, indicate the power and effect o f baptism, which is simply the slaying o f the Old Adam and the resurrection o f t h e n e w man.' 1 Perhaps a congregation can only c o m p r e h e n d baptism as death and resurrection if tne font nolds e n o u g h water that an adult could drown. D o e s not the m e a n i n g o f baptism deserve and indeed d e m a n d that kind o f architectural and ritual radicality? T h e preference f o r submersion is not novel for Anglicans: ' T h e first m e t h o d o f baptizing which the C h u r c h o f England acknowledges (and this has always been the case) is submersion. It stands there in the rubric [in the Alternative Service Book], and has been a c o n t i n u o u s witness from the days o f Anglo-Saxon baptisms in rivers to N o r m a n fonts which can still be seen today and are large enough to dip a baby, and from the days o f Cranmer's Prayer B o o k s which explicitly required submersion . . . right through to ASB 1980 which makes it the first choice still.' 2 In the current R o m a n C a t h o l i c adult baptismal rite, the rubrics prefer 'immersion,' which is defined as being ' o f the whole b o d y or o f the head only'. 3 T h u s the acts o f submersion and immersion are c o m b i n e d in the term immersion. The same m o d e is specified for children o f catechetical age.

Fourth, fonts are for the baptism of adults as well as infants. While, w i t h o u t a doubt, the majority o f baptisms in liturgical churches are o f infants, adult baptisms are occurring in growing numbers. But will adult baptism ever be taken seriously by the Church, o r by the adult candidates, until o n c e again fonts are provided which enable adult submersion? It is a ritual and symbolic contradiction o f the m e a n i n g o f baptism to require an adult to bend over a font which looks like a birdbath.

1

2

3

Section 4; in Theodore G. Tappen (trans, and ed.), The Book of Concord: The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church (Fortress Press, Philadelphia, 1959), pp.444-445. Colin Buchanan, in Buchanan, Trevor Lloyd, and Harold Miller (eds.), Anglican Worship Today (Collins, London, 1980), pp.169-170. Regarding Anglican fonts (in England and Wales) designed for adult immersion and submersion, see Brandwood. International Commission on English in the Liturgy, and U.S. Bishops' Committee on the Liturgy, Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, p. 142.

Fonts for Today

47

Certainly infant baptisms wilt continue, but that should not control people's understanding of the m e a n i n g of the sacrament. If the baptismal paradigm shifts from its birth orientation to the paschal, baptism can be liberated f r o m its bondage to the trivial and m i n i m a l With fonts large enough and deep e n o u g h for adult submersion, the Church can be freed f r o m symbolic and ritual bankruptcy. Even if agiven parish does not currently practise submersion of adults, an ample font would make it possible in the future. T H E DESIGN' O F F O N T S

Size T h e pre-eminent symbol of baptism is living water, for which the font functions as container. T h e most i m p o r t a n t quality or the font is, therefore, the a m o u n t of water it holds. Ar the most minimal, a font should hold e n o u g h water for the immersion of infants; as a rule of t h u m b , that means a font 1 metre across, with water at least .50 metres deep. Ideally, however, a font should be large enough to a c c o m m o d a t e the submersion of adults as well as infants. Thus, a general guideline is 2.50 metres across, with water about 1 metre deep. The font at the new St. Benedict C h u r c h 1 (Illustration I) in Chicago is 7.30 metres in diameter; at its deepest, the water is a b o u t I metre deep. It holds nearly

' J a m e s J. Belli, a r c h i t e c t ; Regina K u e h n , liturgical d e s i g n c o n s u l t a n t .

48

On Baptismal Fonts. Ancient and

Modern

3 8,000 litres of water, and has seven broad steps. Located in an African-American parish, the font was designed to reflect the traditional African respect for the earth, and thus is round, to resemble a natural pool of water. 1 A large font/pool makes a visual statement about the meaning and importance of baptism. Large submersion pools communicate symbolic intensity; in holding enough water to drown or bathe in, they help people enlarge and deepen their understanding of baptism as burial with Christ and as salvific washing in the Triune Name. Adults and Infants It is a challenge to design fonts which enable both adult and infant baptism by immersion or submersion. Some modern fonts have two or more levels of water, usually a raised area for infants and a separate lower pool for adults. Bur these multi-level pools may tend to suggest that infant baptism is fundamentally different from adult baptism. That, in turn, may be an inadvertent contradiction of the fact that 'there is one Lord, one faith, one Baptism' (Ephesians 4.5). The cruciform font at St. Charles Borromeo Church 2 (Illustration 2) in London suggests a way to provide a pool which can serve for both infant and adult baptism. Built in the 1982 renovation of an old inner-city church, the sunken pool is

Illustration 2 — St. Charles Borromeo, L o n d o n . 1

2

For m o r e on this font, see Baldwin; and Kuehn, pp.45-50. Also see below, u n d e r 'Location Michael Anderson, architcct This font is modelled after o n e in Madrid, designed by Ktko Arguello.

Fonts for Today

49

c r u c i f o r m , 3.65 m e t r e s across, s e t w i t h i n a n o c t a g o n a l rim. T h e a d u l t c a n d i d a t e d e s c e n d s i n t o t h e w a t e r s of d e a t h w i t h C h r i s t a n d t h e n rises i n t o n e w life. (Illustration 3) By g o i n g d o w n t h e s t e p s o n o n e s i d e a n d c o m i n g u p o n t h e o p p o s i t e side, t h e r e is t h e e x p e r i e n c e of b a p t i s m as a p a s s a g e f r o m o n e life i n t o a n o t h e r , s i m i l a r to t h e Israelites' p a s s a g e t h r o u g h t h e R e d Sea f r o m slavery i n t o f r e e d o m . T h i s f o n t e n a b l e s l i n e a r as well as vertical m o v e m e n t : d e s c e n t , s u b m e r s i o n , p a s s a g e , a n d a s c e n t . T h e s q u a r e c r o s s i n g a r e a a t its c e n t r e c a n b e i s o l a t e d b y p l a t e glass p a n e l s , s o t h a t o n l y t h e c e n t r e n e e d s t o b e filled w i t h w a t e r f o r i n f a n t b a p t i s m , t h u s p r e c l u d i n g t h e n e c e s s i t y of t h e p r i e s t also b e i n g in t h e w a t e r . 1

•MII

.¡I-

MRH

Illustration 3 — St. Charles Borromeo, London.

Shape T h e s h a p e of a f o n t is i m p o r t a n t s y m b o l i c a l l y a n d p e d a g o g i c a l l v . M a n y f o n t s w h i c h a r e of n o n - s y m b o l i c s h a p e s l o o k m o r e like t h e y b e l o n g in s h o p p i n g m a l l s o r s p a s o r g a r d e n s , t h a n in c h u r c h e s ; t h e y a r e i n c a p a b l e o f e v o k i n g b a p t i s m a l 1

For more on this font, see Nugent. Also, see below, u n d e r 'Covers.'

50

On Baptismal

Fonts: Ancient

and

Modern

imagery. Indeed, they are more likely to evoke t h o u g h t s of luxury and consumerism, thus contradicting the counter-cultural nature of Christianity ('Do not be c o n f o r m e d to this world . . .' Romans 12.2). Based on the paschal paradigm for baptism, cruciform fonts most immediately 'speak' the m e a n i n g of this sacrament. This seems particularly i m p o r t a n t in m o d e r n Western culture where the denial of death is pervasive, a n a in an age when the scandal of the cross is less appealing to m a n y people than cheap grace. In recent research on Anglican worship in inner-city England., it was f o u n d that 'some in the inner city felt that the Alternative Service Book was too tnumphalistic, with too m u c h use of resurrection imagery. W h a t they wanted .. . was s o m e t h i n g that reflected a little more realistically the pain of the cross.' 1 C ruciform fonts can speak clearly that baptism is the sacrament of the cross. O u t s t a n d i n g cruciform fonts, both built in the g r o u n d and set within octagonal rims, were built in renovauons of two inner-city churches in London: St Charles Borromeo (in 1982; see above), and Guardian Angel C h u r c h 2 (in 1988). (Colour plate 3) .Another in-ground cruciform font was built in 1986 in St. Francis of Assisi Church, Concord, California. 3 (Illustration 4) This pool is approximately 2

Illustration 4 — St. Francis of Assisi, C o n c o r d , CA. 1

2 3

Trevor Lloyd, ' I n n e r City I.ngland,' in David R. 5 loleton, ed., Liturgical Inadturation in the Anglican Communion ( A l c u i n / G R O W J o i n t Liturgical Study no. IS, G r o v e Books, Bramcote, Notts., 1990), p.43. Mottio Del Prete, architect. Frank Mighetto, architect.

Fonts for Today

51

metres across, with water a b o u t .75 metres deep. On opposite sides of the cross, there are three steps into and out of the water. T h e pool is faced with blue ceramic tile. 1 In 1993 a large above-ground cruciform font was constructed at the new Lutheran Churcn ot the Redeemer, C h i m a c u m , Washington. 2 ((Co/oz/r plate 4) H o l d i n g approximately 500 gallons of water, it is a b o u t 2 metres across and 1 metre deep, and has two steps on each of two opposite interior sides. Two sets of oak steps are placed on the exterior of the font when there are baptisms, one set for entrance into the pool, and the other on the opposite side for exit. T h e water is heated and re-circulated. T h e font is constructed of poured concrete and faced with native stone on the exterior and waterproof plaster on the interior. A different type of cruciform font has been constructed in the reordering of the Anglican Cathedral in Portsmouth, England.3 (.Illustration 5) It is above-ground, with one interior step on each side, and an interior d e p t h of .56 metres. T h e exterior of the font is nearly 1.70 metres long and 1.15 metres wide. It enables both infant and adult immersion w i t h o u t the presider being in the water. A valve in the drain (at the bottom centre) permits both filling and draining. Octagonal fonts also symbolize the paschal (death and resurrection) m e a n i n g of baptism, although they take far more catelllustration 5 — Anglican Cathedral, Portsmouth.

1 2 3

chesis than t h e cross-

For m o r e o n this f o n t , see S t a u f f e r (1988), p p . 2 4 - 2 7 D e s i g n e d by Lou H e f n e r of t h e parish. M i c h a e l D r u r y , a r c h i t e c t ; D a v i d S t a n c l i f t e , liturgical c o n s u l t a n t .

52

On Baptismal Fonts. Ancient and

Modern

shape itself. It is ideal if octagonal fonts have steps on opposite sides, enabling the sense of passage through the waters, as well as descent and ascent. ,Vn above-ground octagonal pool was constructed in the 1986 renovation 1 of Saints Peter and Paul Catnedral in Indianapolis, Indiana. This font is a b o u t 1.70 metres across, with water approximately .50 metres deep. It m u s t be entered via a portable stile (set of steps). 2 T h e octagonal font at St. Monica C h u r c h 3 in Chicago is 2.40 metres across. It has interior steps on only one side (see pages 54-55 below).

Covers T h e cruciform font at St. Charles Borromeo Church (see above) can be covered with sections of brass-faced timber, so that a coffin can be set on it for a funeral. (.Illustration 6) Again, the paschal m e a n i n g of baptism is m a d e clear, and a visual connection is immediately m a d e between baptismal death and earthly death. T h e sections of the cover serve as an altar frontal at all times except when there is a funeral in the church. Thus, a visual connection is also m a d e between baptism and eucharist. (Whether this practice works well, however, d e p e n d s on the location of the font.)

I l l u s t r a t i o n 6 — St. C h a r l e s B o r r o m e o , L o n d o n . ' E d w a r d A. Sövik. a r c h i t e c t . S e e also b e l o w , u n d e r ' C o v e r s ' For m o r e o n this f o n t , see S t a u f f e r (1988), p p . 2 3 - 2 4 , J J o h n C. V o o s e n , a r c h i t e c t ; Regina K u c h n . liturgical d e s i g n c o n s u l t a n t . S e e also below, u n d e r 'Location.' 2

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Fonts do not otherwise need covers and, in fact, should not be covered. When people come into the church, they should be able both to see and to touch the water. In some places, however, insurance regulations or municipal laws may make it necessary to prevent accidental drowning of children. In those situations it is necessary to design safeguarding devices which neither detract from the symbolism of the font nor make the water inaccessible. The octagonal font at the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in Indianapolis (see above) can be safeguarded with a brass wire 'fishnet', hooked into the interior of the pool about 2 centimetres below the surface of the water. It is easily removed when baptism is celebrated. Another approach to prevention of drowning was taken at Redeemer, Chimacum, Washington (see above): short table-like clear plexiglass inserts are placed below the water surface when there are no baptisms. They are virtually invisible and easily removable. Bubbles are prevented by the use of a debubbling solution made for hot tubs. LOCATION

The font is a part of the worship space, not a furnishing set in it. It is best to think of the font in architectonic terms, not as a piece of furniture. Likewise, the font should be located in its own defined space, just as the altar has its own defined space. It should be visible and accessible to the worshipping assembly. Finally, it is important that the space around the font be adequate both for people to gather around it for the sacramental celebration, as well as for other liturgical purposes. In addition, provision should be made near the font for placement of the oil (chrism) and the paschal candle. The location of the font makes a theological statement—preferably a statement of baptism as entrance into the community of believers. The most meaningful (and a very practical) location is just inside the main entrance to the nave. The baptistery at St. Monica Church (see above) in Chicago is located perfectly. (Illustration 7) The people enter the building into a spacious narthex or gathering area. The baptistery is between the narthex and the nave, with no barriers between these three spaces. Baptism is symbolized not only as entrance, but also as liminality, as threshold. The baptistery itself is octagonal, evocative of early Christian baptisteries such as that in Milan. Clerestory windows make it a light space in the daytime, and the stained glass wall splashes colour across the entire baptistery, including the water. The font must be passed in order to enter the nave, and the font is on axis with the altar, thus making a good visual and theological connection between baptism and eucharist. The baptistery is a well-defined space, yet it is functionally a part of the worship space. 54

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Another excellent entrance location (Illustration 8) is at St. Benedict the African in Chicago (see above). After entering the church building, the people walk up a curving and sloping hallway, and then around the large baptismal pool, before going into the worship space. The baptistery, the pool, and the worship space are all round, and the pool is on axis with the altar. When there is a baptism, the congregation literally surrounds the font, providing a 'communal embrace' of the neophyte.

ICONOGRAPHY

Iconography is one means of calling attention to the font, as well as of visually proclaiming the meanings of baptism. The corners of the fonts at St. Charles Borromeo Church and Guardian Angel Church, both in London, contain symbols of the four evangelists in mosaic. The stained glass baptistery wall at St. Monica Church 1 , Chicago, depicts water and aquatic life, and the glass is low enough that children can lookdirectly at the water and fish imagery as they walk through the baptistery. Images of biblical 'water' narratives might also be put on a canopy over the font, as was done at St. Hugo of the Hills Church in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. 2 1 2

Robert Harmon, stained-glass artist. Robert E. Rambusch, designer.

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It is better if decoration of fonts is limited to images, because they are multivalent and have evocative power. The use of words is discouraged because they are more cerebral than evocative. T E M P O R A R Y F O N T S FOR T H E E A S I E R V I G I L

In parishes where it is impossible to install a significant font which will accommodate adult submersion, temporary fonts can be constructed easily and inexpensively for use annually at the Easter Vigil. Another use of such temporary fonts is in parishes considering renovation or new construction, in which a font for immersion or submersion is proposed. It is important to determine in advance that the floor where the temporary font is to be located is solid enough to bear the water's weight. Perhaps the easiest way to provide a temporary font is to borrow an oblong watering tank for farm animals, although this requires thoughtful covering and decoration. It is relatively simple to construct a rectangular font of wood or concrete blocks which has the appearance of a coffin. Waterproofing can be provided by several swimming-pool liners. However, the paschal meaning of Baptism is clearer to neophytes and congregation alike if a cruciform font is built out of concrete blocks, and waterproofed with pool liners. 1 With any of these, consideration should be given to making the bottom of the pool slip-proof. In addition, the appearance deserves careful thought, so that it does not distract from the sacramental purpose. Temporary fonts can be filled with warm water using simple garden hoses, and can be drained by a siphon or with a small pump. It is important to be sure the sides and ends of the font are sturdy enough to withstand the heavy weight and pressure of the water. It is wise to wrap the sides of concrete-block or wooden fonts with two steel bands. PRACTICALITIES

Steps Steps within fonts are both utilitarian and symbolic. They enable entrance into and exit from the water, in a way which allows the candidate to descend into death and burial with Christ, and then ascend into new life in him. Often the number of steps has been interpreted with additional symbolism, but perhaps it is better simply to let them provide the experience of going down and coming up. Iwo sets of steps should be provided within opposite sides of fonts, thus enabling the neophyte actually to pass through the baptismal waters. (See

Illustration J) 1

For a description and photos ol one such temporary cruciform font, see Marchai and Conrad.

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If the font is above-ground, two portable sets of steps are placed at oppositeexterior sides of the font on days w h e n there are baptisms. (Illustration 9)

Illustration 9 — Redeemer, C h i m a c u m , WA.

For safety, non-slip surfaces should be used for steps. However, it is best, for symbolic and aesthetic reasons, to avoid handrails. If assistance is needed, let it be provided by a minister, sponsor, or a n o t h e r m e m b e r of the congregation, as an e n a c t m e n t of h u m a n s u p p o r t within the body of Christ.

Floor The floor s u r r o u n d i n g the font must be impervious to water; therefore, wood a n d / o r carpet surfaces are not advised. In addition, the surface should not be slippery. Water splashed on a polished marble or terrazzo floor, for example, renders it extremely hazardous for walking. Surfaces with s o m e texture are better than highly polished floors.

Changing Rooms W h e n adult immersion a n d / o r submersion is practised, nearby changing rooms are needed, perhaps for the presider as well as the neophytes. T h e entire floor between the font and the changing rooms, as well as within the changing rooms themselves, should be water-resistant and non-slippery. It is helpful to provide towels, mirrors, combs, and perhaps hairdryers. If properly located, restrooms can serve as changing rooms. 58

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Piumbing Fonts large enough for adulr submersion require several types of plumbing equipment. First, a pumping system is needed to fill and drain the font. Both for good maintenance access, and for noise prevention, it is best if the p u m p and its controls are a distance from the font itself. Second, a decision must be made whether or not the font will have recirculating water. Some congregations and architects prefer to avoid the symbolism of re-circulating the water in which G o d ' s grace is bestowed. In other situations, water conservation is more important. Third, it is desirable for the water actually to move within the font (whether or not it is re-cycled). This can be accomplished by various means of aeration or by a small pump. Fourth is the need for heating the water to a comfortable level prior to the celebration of a baptism. Fifth, it is necessary to determine whether the water needs to be filtered, whether it needs to be purified, and how to keep the font clean from algae and other impurities. Depending on the water source, a wide variety of methods is possible. RITUAL MATTERS

ModeChapter 1 describes various modes of baptism in history, and the difference between submersion and immersion. Both submersion and immersion require a sense of grace and deliberateness on the part of the presiding minister. It is not inappropriate to suggest pastors and priests should practise these acts well in advance, until the mechanics of the movements artmastered, so that the movements can be graceful and unhurried when done within the actual sacramental setting. Perhaps this is particularly true for clergy inexperienced in handling infants. Submersion of adults can be done several ways, depending on the depth of the water in the font. If the font is deep enough, the presider may stand slightly to the rear of the candidate, place his/her arm across the candidate's upper back, and lower the candidate backwards completely under the water. (Illustration 10) if it is Illustration 10 — St. Charles Borromeo, London. easier, the candidate may be Fonts for Today

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lowered frontwards, completely under the water. If the water is not deep enough for the candidate to stand, he o r she may kneel, and be lowered forward by the presider, until the candidate's head is c o m p l e t e l y under the water. I m m e r s i o n o f adults can also be done in a variety o f ways, with the candidate either standing or kneeling in the water. T h e presider may pour a generous amou nt o f water over the head (perhaps using a large ewer o r pitcher), or the presider may push the candidate's head forwards, partially into t h e water. In the West, infants are submersed horizontally; in the East, infant submersion is d o n e vertically. In either case, the infant is lowered completely under the water. S o m e parents will be more comfortable with immersion o f infants, rather than submersion. T h e presider may hold the infant, lowering both body and head partially into the water as the formula is spoken. Or, a parent or sponsor may hold the infant partially in the water, as the presider scoops water over the head while speaking the formula. W h e t h e r submersion or immersion, with adults o r infants, the action normally is repeated three times (once at the naming o f each person o f the Trinity in the baptismal formula), although this depends on the rite in use.

Clothing for Candidates and Presiders For either submersion or immersion, infants are baptized naked (although it might prove wise to use a lightweight cloth diaper or a rubber pant with a male infant). Adult candidates are modestly and practically clothed. Skirts should be avoided. Both men and w o m e n may wear washable slacks and simple shortsleeved shirts, preferably in dark colours (thus providing a contrast with the white post-baptismal garment). Obviously, candidates are to be barefoot. As tne neophytes leave the water, they may be dried with large, thick white towels, and then e n r o b e d in white garments (preferably m a d e o f relatively heavy fabric). In s o m e churches, the presentation o f the baptismal g a r m e n t is accompanied by a text a b o u t its meaning. 1 Thus, the white g a r m e n t has both practical and symbolic functions; its use can be traced to the early C h u r c h , and it has reference to Galatians 3.27 and Revelation 7.9. I f the design o f the font is such that the presiding minister also enters the water, his or her alb should be o f heavy washable fabric and should have weights sewn into the h e m . 1

The American Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) rubrics call for a representative of the congregation to say 'Put on this robe, for in Baptism you have been clothed in the righteousness of Christ, who calls you to his great feast.' (However, the presentation of the garment is too late in the rite to be practical if submersion or immersion has been used.) The Roman Catholic Rite ofChristian Initiation of Adults (1988) specifies that while the godparents place the garment on the newly baptized, the presider says 'You have become a new creation and have clothed yourselves in Christ. Receive this baptismal garment and bring it unstained to the judgment seat of our Lord Jesus Christ, so that you may have everlasting life.

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On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

A time needs to be provided after the baptisms for neophytes (and the preside^ if he/she has entered the water) to change into dry clothing. (See section on changing rooms, above.) During this time, the congregation may sing hymns. After changing, neophytes remain clothed in the white baptismal garments through the conclusion of the liturgy. CONCLUSION

The sacrament of holy baptism is a profound and radical act—profound because it draws us deeply into Christ and the paschal mystery, and radical because it grafts us onto the very roots of the Christian faith and into the body of Christ. Baptism is simultaneously a cosmic and an individual act—because it makes each of us a part of salvation history. It is a profoundly personal act with radical corporate consequences—because it makes each of us a child of God, while at the same time incorporating us into the whole c o m m u n i o n of saints of every time and every place. Baptism is a termination and a new beginning—because it is the death of our old selves, and the beginning of life in Christ and his Church. The waters which drown us are also the waters which give us new life. In passing through the waters of the font, we take u p the cross of Christ; but at tne same time, Christ gives us proleptic entrance into Paradise. Font designs based on such theology can result in fonts which are worthy of their holy purpose, and which will in themselves be instrumental in ongoing spiritual formation.

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Bonnet, Charles, 'Baptistères et groupes épiscopaux d'Aoste et de Genève, évolution architecturale et a m é n a g e m e n t s liturgiques' in Actes du Xle congrès international d'archéologie chrétienne, Vol. II (Lyon, Vienne, Grenoble, Genève et Aoste, 1986) (Pontificio Istituto di Archeologie Cristiana, Roma, 1989), pp. 1407-1426. Geneva in Early Christian Times (Geneva, 1986). , 'Saint-Pierre de Genève, recentes découvertes archéologiques' in Archéologie suisse, Vol. 3, No. 4 (1980), pp.174-191. , and Renato Permetti, Aoste: aux premiers temps chrétiens (Musumeci Editeur, Aoste, Italy, 1986). Bovini, Giuseppi, Ravenna: Its Mosaics and Monuments (A. Longo Editore, Ravenna, 1980). Bradshaw, Paul, The Search for the Origins of Christian Worship (SPCK, London, 1992). Chapter 7: 'Christian Initiation, A Study m Diversity'. Brandwood, G. K., 'Immersion Baptistries in Anglican Churches' in Archaeological Journal, 147 (1990), pp.420-436. Brivio, Ernesto. Guide of the Duomo of Milan (Veneranda Fabbrica of the D u o m o , Milano, 1978). Brown, H e n r y F., Baptism through the Centuries (Pacific Press, M o u n t a i n View, California,'1965). Brusin, Giovanni, Aquileia e Grado (Edizione secunda. l ip. Antoniana, Padua, Italy, 1952). Buhler, F. M. Archéologie et hapeteme, évolutioìì du baptême et des installations baptismales (Centre de Culture Chrétienne, Mulhouse. 1986). , 'Occupation romaine des régions rhénanes et questions posées par les installations baptismales des ouvrages militaires' in Bulletin du Musée historique et des sciences humaines de. Mulhouse, Tome XCI (! 984). Burnish, Raymond, The Meaning of Baptism. A Comparison of the Teaching and Practice of the Fourth Century with the Present Day (Alcuin Club Collection No. 67. Alcuin Club/SPCK, London, 1985). Cabrai, F., H. LeClerc, and H. Marrou, Dictionnaire d'archéologie chrétienne et de la liturgie (Librairie Letouzey et Ané, Paris, 1924-1953). (See articles on individual sites.) Cameron, Averil, 'Byzantine Africa, T h e Literary Evidence' in Excavations at Carthage 1978 Conducted by the University of Michigan. Vol. VI I Edited by J. (I. H u m p h r e y (Kelsey M u s e u m , University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1982). Canby, Courtlandt, A Guide to the Archaeological Sites of Israel Egi'pt and North Africa (Facts on File, N e w York, 1990). C h a p m a n , Michael Andrew, 'The Liturgical Directions of Saint Charles Borromeo, T h e Baptistery' in Liturgical Arts, 24.1 (November 1955), 13-15. Cintas, J., and N. Duval, 'L'église d u prêtre Felix (région de Kélibia)' in Karthaeo IX (1958), pp.155-265. Clover, Frank, 'Carthage and the Vandals' in Excavations at Carthage 1978 Conducted by the University of Michigan. Vol. VII. Edited by J. II. H u m p h r e y (Keisey M u s e u m , University of Michigan. Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1982). Fonts for Today

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Colombo, Silvano, and Gianfranco Garancini, 11 Battistero: Note storiche ed artistiche per la conoscenza dei monumenti varesini (Edizioni Lativa, Varese, 1981). Corbett, G. U. S, 'A Note on the Arrangement of the Early Christian Buildings at Aquileia' in Rivista di archeologia cristiana, 32 (1956), pp.99-106. Cote, Wolfred Nelson, The Archaeology of Baptism (Yates and Alexander, London, 1876). Courtois, Christian, 'Sur un baptistère découvert dans la région de Kélibia' in Karthago, VI (1955), pp.97-127. Cramer, Peter, Baptism and Change in the Early Middle Ages, c. 200-c. 1150 (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1993). Cuscito, Giuseppe, Die Basilika von Aquileia (La Fotocromo Emiliana, Bologna, 1978). , Die Frtlchristlichen Basiliken von Grado (Specimen Grafica Editoriale, Bologna, 1979). Danielou, Jean, Primitive Christian Symbols. Translated by Donald Atwater. (Helicon Press, Baltimore, 1964). and Marrou, Henri, The Christian Centuries, The First Six Hundred Years (Darton, Longman and Todd, London. 1979). David-Roy, Marguerite, 'Les baptistères de la Gaule' in Archéologie, No. 135(10/ 1979), pp.51-59. Davies, J. G., The Architectural Setting of Baptism (Barne and Rockliff, London, 1962). The Origin and Development of Early Christian Church Architecture (SCM Press Ltd., London, 1952). De Bruyne, L, 'La décoration des baptistères paléo-chrétiens' in Miscellanea Liturgica in honorem L C. Mohlberg (Roma, 1948), pp,189ff. Deichmann, F. W., 'Baptistenum' in (T. Klausered.), Reallexikon für Antike und Christentum (Hiersemann. Stuttgart, 1950). Vol. I, cols. 1 157-1 167. Dölger, F. J., 'Zur Symbolik des altchristlichen Taufhauses' m Antike und Christentum, IV (1934), pp.153-187. D'Ossat, G. de Angelis, 'L'architettura ambrosiana ed il Battistero di Fréjus' in Vili Corso di Cultura sulTArte Ravennate e Bizantina (Ravenna, 1961). Drewer, Lois, 'Fisherman and Fish Pond, From the Sea of Sin to the Living Waters' in The Art Bulletin, LX11L4 (December 1981), pp.533-547. Duval, Noel, Basiliques chrétiennes dAfrique du Nord. 1, Inventaire de l'Algérie. Tome 1, Texte; Lome 2, Illustrations (Institut d'Études Augustiniennes, Paris, 1992). 'Église et temple en Afrique d u Nord' in Bulletin archéologique du Comité des travaux historiques et scientifiques, nouvelle série,7,année 1971 (Paris, 1973), pp.265-296. , 'Études d'archéologie chrétienne nord-africaine, XVII—Une nouvelle cuve baptismale dans le centre de Carthage' in Revue des études Augustiniennes, 34 (1988), pp.86-92. 64

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Bibliography

71

Index Cruciform fonts 13, 14, 15. 34-38, 43, 50-53, 57

Acholla 36, 40

Cyprian 8, 9, 10, 39

Adam and Eve 18 Adult Baptism 10, 13, 27. 28, 2 9 . 4 5 , 48,

, 58-60 Cynl of Jerusalem 9

Affusion 9-10, 14, 28, 46

David and Goliath 18

Aix-en-Provence 27

Deer 19. 29

Alpha and omega 38

Descent and ascent 11, 13, 40, 50, 53, 57

Ambrose 7. 8, 9, 11. 22-25

Didache

Ambrosian Baptistery 22-25

Dipping 9, 10

Angels 19

Dolphin 7, 38

12

Aosta 17, 22, 29, 37, 43-44

Dove 39

Apostolic Tradition

Dura-Furopos 5, 13. 15. 18, 42

12

Aquileia 19. 22, 29, 30, 42

Caster Vigil 9. 22, 24, 57

Aspersion 9-10, 28, 46

Eighth Day 22. 34

Augustine 8, 9. 22

El kanrara 36

Baptism of Jesus 10, 19, 20

Eucharist 39

Bath imagery 6-8, 14, 15, 20, 24, 46. 49

Evangelists, four 29

Baths 6. 12, 15, 18, 19, 20, 30. 31, 42

Exultet 38

Bee 38

Fish 7. 29, 38. 45, 56

Birds 31, 39

France 13. 17, 22, 33

Birth imagery 6-10, 14, 19, 20, 46

Fréjus 26-27

Bloomfield Hills, MI 56

hrigiduñii

Brusc 41

Garment, white 60-61

19

Bulla Regia 35, 36

Gelasian Sacramentary 8

Candles 38

Geneva 17, 19, 25. 27. 29

Canopies 15, 16, 18, 29, 56

Grado 30

Cantharus 39

Grapes 29

Carthage 7, 8, 9. 10, 12, 31-32, 36, 39

1 ladrumetum 7

Castelseprio 26

1 leahng of the paralytic 18

Cella (of temple) 34, 39, 43

1 lergla 40

Chalice 31, 39

Hexagonal fonts 13. 14, 15, 29-32, 42, 43

Chateauneuf-de-Grasse 41

1 lypocausts 25, 42

Chicago 48-49, 54, 56

Iconography 45, 56-57

Chimacum, WA 52, 54

Immersion 9-11, 13, 14. 18. 24, 25, 28. 29, 46-48,

Chrysostom 9

52. 58-60

Cihma 15, 16, 25, 27, 30, 3 1. 34, 35, 36, 41. 43

Indianapolis 54

Cimiez 30

Infant Baptism 10. H, 14, 27, 28, 35. 46.

Circular fonts 14, 15. 17, 19-22, 27, 3 1, 43. 44. 56 Cisterns 21. 24, 26, 32. 34

48. 50, 60 Inscriptions 20, 24, 39 Irenaeus 7

Cividale 13, 28

Italy 13. 17, 22, 33

Concord, CA 51 -52

J bel Oust 39

Covers 16, 53-54

Justin Martyr 8. 12

Cranmer, I homas 47

Kélibia 7, 38

Cross 7, 19, 34-38, 39. 41. 51

Ea Skhira 37

72

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modtrn

L a m b s 20. 29

Ravenna 20-21. 30

Lateran Baptistery IS, 19

Rectangular fonts 13. 14, 17-19. 42. 44, 57

Laurel garland 41

Riez 27

Lead fonts 14

Riva San Vitale 27

Leo the G r e a t 8, 9

Rivers of Paradise 9, 39

Loeation 54-56

R o m e 8, 11, 12, 13. 15. 18-20. 30

Lomello 30

Roses 41

L o n d o n 49-51, S3, 56

R o u n d fonts (see Circular fonts)

Luther, Martin 6, 10, 46-47

Safety 54, 58

Lyon 25

Sarcophagi 17-18

Maktar 3 3

Sbeitla 17, 32. 39, 40-41, 43

M a u s o l e a 15-16, 23. 24

S c u l p t u r e 28, 29

M e n i n x 36

Seiche 38

Milan 7, 8. 9, 1 1, 13, 15, 22-25. 26. 54

S h a p e 13-15. 17.passim, 50-54

Minimalism 14, 28, 48

Shell 36

M o d e 9-10, 59-60

Sixtus 111 20

Mosaics 7, 16, 20, 23, 3 1, 34. 36. 37, 38,

Size 48-49 Sprinkling (sec Aspersion)

39, 40, 41

S q u a r e fonts 14. 15, 33-34, 39, 44

Mustis 21 Nice 30

Stan, 18

N o a h ' s ark 39

Steps 11.19, 2 4 , 2 6 . 29. 30, 31.32, 34.36, 3 7 . 3 8 , 3 9 ,

Octagonal f o n t s 13, 14. 17. 21. 22-29, 43, Odes of Solomon

40, 41, 42, 43. 52, 57-58 S u b m e r s i o n 9-11, 1 1 4 , 24, 28. 29, 36, 45-48. 57,

44, 51, 54 9

Optatus 8

58, 59-60. 61 Switzerland 17. 33

Origen 8

l e m p l e s 34, 39, 43

Paradise 9, 18, 38. 39. 61

I e m p o r a r y fonts 57

Paschal candle 38, 54

lertullian 7. 8. 12, 38. 45

Paschal imagery 6-11. 14, 16, 18, 22, 24, 29.

T h e o d o r e of M o p s u e s t i a 9

34. 38, 42, 45-47. 49, 51, 53, 57 Passage 11, 40, 50, 57

T h u b u r b o M a | u s 34-35. 36 I b m b imagery 8-11, 14, 15-16, 24, 30. 34-38

Peacocks 29

Trees 9. 38

Pedilavmm

Tunisia H , 14. 17. 20. 21. 29. 34, 38, 39

25. 27

Peristyle 31. 40

L p p e n n a 3 3. 39-40

Polygonal fonts 14, 43

Varese 28

Polylobe fonts 39-40

Vines, g r a p e 29. 39

Pompeii 19

Water symbolism 6-11, 45-48, 56, 61

P o r t s m o u t h 52

W o m a n at t h e well 18

Pouring (see A f f u s i o n )

W o m b imagery 7-10. 14, 19, 20, 38

Quadrilobe fonts 1 3. 14. 15. 17. 38-39, 43

Zeno of Verona 8

Quodvultdeus 8

Zurzach 19, 34, 44

Index

73

Index Cruciform fonts 13, 14, 15. 34-38, 43, 50-53, 57

Acholla 36, 40

Cyprian 8, 9, 10, 39

Adam and Eve 18 Adult Baptism 10, 13, 27. 28, 2 9 . 4 5 , 48,

, 58-60 Cynl of Jerusalem 9

Affusion 9-10, 14, 28, 46

David and Goliath 18

Aix-en-Provence 27

Deer 19. 29

Alpha and omega 38

Descent and ascent 11, 13, 40, 50, 53, 57

Ambrose 7. 8, 9, 11. 22-25

Didache

Ambrosian Baptistery 22-25

Dipping 9, 10

Angels 19

Dolphin 7, 38

12

Aosta 17, 22, 29, 37, 43-44

Dove 39

Apostolic Tradition

Dura-Furopos 5, 13. 15. 18, 42

12

Aquileia 19. 22, 29, 30, 42

Caster Vigil 9. 22, 24, 57

Aspersion 9-10, 28, 46

Eighth Day 22. 34

Augustine 8, 9. 22

El kanrara 36

Baptism of Jesus 10, 19, 20

Eucharist 39

Bath imagery 6-8, 14, 15, 20, 24, 46. 49

Evangelists, four 29

Baths 6. 12, 15, 18, 19, 20, 30. 31, 42

Exultet 38

Bee 38

Fish 7. 29, 38. 45, 56

Birds 31, 39

France 13. 17, 22, 33

Birth imagery 6-10, 14, 19, 20, 46

Fréjus 26-27

Bloomfield Hills, MI 56

hrigiduñii

Brusc 41

Garment, white 60-61

19

Bulla Regia 35, 36

Gelasian Sacramentary 8

Candles 38

Geneva 17, 19, 25. 27. 29

Canopies 15, 16, 18, 29, 56

Grado 30

Cantharus 39

Grapes 29

Carthage 7, 8, 9. 10, 12, 31-32, 36, 39

1 ladrumetum 7

Castelseprio 26

1 leahng of the paralytic 18

Cella (of temple) 34, 39, 43

1 lergla 40

Chalice 31, 39

Hexagonal fonts 13. 14, 15, 29-32, 42, 43

Chateauneuf-de-Grasse 41

1 lypocausts 25, 42

Chicago 48-49, 54, 56

Iconography 45, 56-57

Chimacum, WA 52, 54

Immersion 9-11, 13, 14. 18. 24, 25, 28. 29, 46-48,

Chrysostom 9

52. 58-60

Cihma 15, 16, 25, 27, 30, 3 1. 34, 35, 36, 41. 43

Indianapolis 54

Cimiez 30

Infant Baptism 10. H, 14, 27, 28, 35. 46.

Circular fonts 14, 15. 17, 19-22, 27, 3 1, 43. 44. 56 Cisterns 21. 24, 26, 32. 34

48. 50, 60 Inscriptions 20, 24, 39 Irenaeus 7

Cividale 13, 28

Italy 13. 17, 22, 33

Concord, CA 51 -52

J bel Oust 39

Covers 16, 53-54

Justin Martyr 8. 12

Cranmer, I homas 47

Kélibia 7, 38

Cross 7, 19, 34-38, 39. 41. 51

Ea Skhira 37

72

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modtrn

L a m b s 20. 29

Ravenna 20-21. 30

Lateran Baptistery IS, 19

Rectangular fonts 13. 14, 17-19. 42. 44, 57

Laurel garland 41

Riez 27

Lead fonts 14

Riva San Vitale 27

Leo the G r e a t 8, 9

Rivers of Paradise 9, 39

Loeation 54-56

R o m e 8, 11, 12, 13. 15. 18-20. 30

Lomello 30

Roses 41

L o n d o n 49-51, S3, 56

R o u n d fonts (see Circular fonts)

Luther, Martin 6, 10, 46-47

Safety 54, 58

Lyon 25

Sarcophagi 17-18

Maktar 3 3

Sbeitla 17, 32. 39, 40-41, 43

M a u s o l e a 15-16, 23. 24

S c u l p t u r e 28, 29

M e n i n x 36

Seiche 38

Milan 7, 8. 9, 1 1, 13, 15, 22-25. 26. 54

S h a p e 13-15. 17.passim, 50-54

Minimalism 14, 28, 48

Shell 36

M o d e 9-10, 59-60

Sixtus 111 20

Mosaics 7, 16, 20, 23, 3 1, 34. 36. 37, 38,

Size 48-49 Sprinkling (sec Aspersion)

39, 40, 41

S q u a r e fonts 14. 15, 33-34, 39, 44

Mustis 21 Nice 30

Stan, 18

N o a h ' s ark 39

Steps 11.19, 2 4 , 2 6 . 29. 30, 31.32, 34.36, 3 7 . 3 8 , 3 9 ,

Octagonal f o n t s 13, 14. 17. 21. 22-29, 43, Odes of Solomon

40, 41, 42, 43. 52, 57-58 S u b m e r s i o n 9-11, 1 1 4 , 24, 28. 29, 36, 45-48. 57,

44, 51, 54 9

Optatus 8

58, 59-60. 61 Switzerland 17. 33

Origen 8

l e m p l e s 34, 39, 43

Paradise 9, 18, 38. 39. 61

I e m p o r a r y fonts 57

Paschal candle 38, 54

lertullian 7. 8. 12, 38. 45

Paschal imagery 6-11. 14, 16, 18, 22, 24, 29.

T h e o d o r e of M o p s u e s t i a 9

34. 38, 42, 45-47. 49, 51, 53, 57 Passage 11, 40, 50, 57

T h u b u r b o M a | u s 34-35. 36 I b m b imagery 8-11, 14, 15-16, 24, 30. 34-38

Peacocks 29

Trees 9. 38

Pedilavmm

Tunisia H , 14. 17. 20. 21. 29. 34, 38, 39

25. 27

Peristyle 31. 40

L p p e n n a 3 3. 39-40

Polygonal fonts 14, 43

Varese 28

Polylobe fonts 39-40

Vines, g r a p e 29. 39

Pompeii 19

Water symbolism 6-11, 45-48, 56, 61

P o r t s m o u t h 52

W o m a n at t h e well 18

Pouring (see A f f u s i o n )

W o m b imagery 7-10. 14, 19, 20, 38

Quadrilobe fonts 1 3. 14. 15. 17. 38-39, 43

Zeno of Verona 8

Quodvultdeus 8

Zurzach 19, 34, 44

Index

73

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

j

v

¿ill

,

V V

Jk

Gorgias Liturgical Studies

30

This series is intended to provide a venue for studies about liturgies as well as books containing various liturgies. Making liturgical studies available to those who wish to learn more about their own worship and practice or about the traditions of other religious groups, this series includes works on service music, the daily offices, services for special occasions, and the sacraments.

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

S. Anita Stauffer

1 gorgias press 2010

Gorgias Press LLC, 180 Centennial Ave., Piscataway, NJ, 08854, USA www.gorgiaspress.com Copyright © 2010 by Gorgias Press LLC Originally published in All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise without the prior written permission of Gorgias Press LLC. 2010

1

ISBN 978-1-60724-381-6

ISSN 1937-3252

Published first in the U.K. by Grove Books, 1994.

Printed in the United States of America

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern by S. Anita Stauffer Study Secretary for Worship and Congregational Life Lutheran World Federation, Geneva, Switzerland

CONTENTS CHAPTER

Preface 1. Water and Baptism 2.

PAGE

5 6

Baptismal Space

12

3. Early Christian Fonts

17

4.

Fonts for Today

45

Bibliography

62

Index

72

Colour Plates

between pages 30 and 3 1

ILLUSTRATION CREDITS Unless otherwise indicated, all photographs are by the author. Gratitude is expressed to those who provided photographs, plans, and permissions. Chapter 4: 1. Photo courtesy of Belli & Belli, Architects; 4. Photo copyright Richard Sexton, courtesy of Mighetto Goldin, Architects; 5. Photo by Robin Coutts, courtesy of David Stancliffe; 7. Plan courtesy of John C. Voosen, Architects; 8. Plan courtesy of Belli & Belli, Architects; 9. Photo courtesy of David Housholder; 10. Photo courtesy of Alan Fudge. Colour Plates: 1. Photo by the author, published by permission of B. Younes Habib, Conservateur du Musee National du Bardo, Tunis; 4. Courtesy of David Housholder.

Preface This little book has a modest definition: it is a report of research in progress, in an a t t e m p t to understand the meaning and practice of baptism in the early C h u r c h and to renew its practice in liturgical churches today. T h e primary focus of the research is ancient and m o d e r n baptismal fonts, because these places of baptism have too often been ignored by liturgical historians and liturgists. A thorough examination of baptism (in history or today) cannot even be approached without attending to the archaeological, architectural, liturgical, and theological evidence these fonts present. Chapter 1 examines the meaning and modes of baptism, and chapter 2 gives an overview of the history and meaning of fonts. In chapter 3, nearly fifty early Christian fonts are introduced, as a means of illustrating the richness of baptism in the patristic Church and, in a sense, to suggest some prototypes for fonts today. C h a p t e r 4 is an a t t e m p t to provide, on the foundations of the historical explorations, architectural and ritual suggestions for recovering baptism's rich meanings in liturgical churches today. T h e point is not repristination, but renewal of the life of the Church. There are intentional limitations to the histoncal material in this volume. First, it concentrates in the West. 1 Second, it deals with fonts, and only incidentally with the baptisteries which were their spatial context. 2 Third, it is limited to fonts which I have examined personally. 3 Fourth, it focuses on the water bath of baptism, and is n o t concerned with other ritual elements. Fifth, it is written for those without training in early Christian archaeology. Sixth, it must acknowledge that there are unanswered questions a b o u t many of the histoncal sites, because of physical damage, or because re-excavation is needed, or because liturgical texts are lacking. As excavating continues, some questions will be answered, and s o m e conclusions here will change. Some of the questions will never be answered. Where possible, translations of patristic writings have been quoted from readily accessible sources, to encourage readers to pursue the writings. Citations in footnotes are abbreviated; full information is provided in the bibliography. With a grateful heart I thank those w h o have shared knowledge and explored questions with me: Ralph R. Van Loon (who reviewed chapter 4), Edward J. Yarnold, S.J., (who reviewed my manuscript); and Mario Mirabella Roberti, Richard Krautheimer, Noel Duval, Eugene L. Brand and G o r d o n Lathrop, all of whose writings and consultations have given m e insight. I acknowledge a similar debt to the late J. G. Davies. Finally, I thank Margaret A. Alexander, w h o with generous graciousness has both literally and figuratively opened to me the baptisteries of ancient Tunisia, and who has insightfully reviewed my manuscript; it is to her that I dedicate this book. 1

2

3

Dura-Europos, Syria, is the exception. It is included because it is by far t h e most ancient f o n t discovered by archaeologists. Prior literature has given p r e d o m i n a n t attention to the baptisteries, often virtually ignor-

ing the fonts—their raison d'être! With the exception of Dura-Europos.

Preface

5

1. Water and Baptism In the beginning was the primeval water of chaos. In the end will be the river of the water of life. Between creation and t h e e s c h a t o n , h u m a n beings are f o r m e d in the waters of their mothers' wombs, and life is sustained by water. It is an absolute necessity; there cannot be life on earth without water. In situations of inadequate water, h u m a n s as well as plants and animals eventually die. But water is multivalent; it is death-dealing as well as life-giving. In water there is both creation and destruction, both life and death. W h e n there is too m u c h of it, water can be an agent of destruction. In torrential rains and floods, people are drowned, trees are uprooted, and property is obliterated. A third layer of m e a n i n g to water comes f r o m its use in washing a n d bathing. In h u m a n use, bathing is both cleansing and renewing. A look at tne m o n u m e n tal public baths of the ancient Roman world makes it clear that even then bathing was for purposes beyond the hygienic, although that was and is primary. N o t only is water both creative and destructive in nature, and cleansing in h u m a n life, but also in its uses by its Creator. T h e waters of creation in Genesis c o m e to their culmination in the river of the water of life in Paradise described in Revelation (22.1-2). G o d used water in the great Flood both to destroy the face of the earth, and to save N o a h and his family. Likewise, G o d parted the waters of the Red Sea to save the Israelites, then caused the returning waves to d r o w n the Egyptians and all the Pharaoh's horses. Repeatedly in the Bible, purification from sin is described as washing. Most importantly, Jesus himself is the living water (John 4.10). Here, in brief, are the phenomenological and typological bases for s o m e of t h e principal meanings of water in holy baptism. Like water it self, baptism is also a b o u t birth/life, aeath/burial, and bath. There are other layers of m e a n i n g to baptism, of course, but these are the principal meanings related to the symbolism of water. Such typology was often reflected in ancient prayers over the water for baptism, and, following this tradition, the typological understanding of water was fully reflected by Martin Luther in the 'flood prayer' {Sintjlutgebet) of his 1523 baptismal rite: 'Almighty eternal G o d , according to your righteous j u d g m e n t you cond e m n e d the unbelieving world through the flood, and in your great mercy you preserved N o a h and his family. You drowned hard-hearted Pharaon and nis host in the Red Sea and led your people Israel through the same on dry ground, thereby prefiguring this bath of baptism. Through the baptism of your dear Child, o u r Lord Jesus Christ, you have consecrated and set apart the Jordan and all water as a salutary flood and a rich and full washing away of sins . . 1

T r a n s l a t i o n based o n t h a t in U l r i c h S. L e u p o l d , (ed.), Luther's Works: Liturgf and Hymns. Vol. 53 (Fortress Press. P h i l a d e l p h i a , 1965), p.97. T h i s p r a y e r w a s n o t original w i t h L u t h e r , b u t w a s his a d a p t a t i o n of t r a d i t i o n as h e k n e w it. L u t h e r ' s p r a y e r w a s a d o p t e d b y T h o m a s C r a n m e r in his 1549 b a p t i s m a l rite; t h e s e m e d i e v a l p r a y e r s a r e t h e lamtinueJ

6

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modem

on p. 7

opponiel

M E A N I N G S OF BAPTISM

These several layers of the meaning of water are reflected in the theology of baptism and t h e symbolism of the baptismal font. Birth and cleansing seem to have been the most prominent understandings of baptism in the West prior to the fourth century, when the paschal understanding of baptism gained prominence. 1 Birth imagery for baptism is p r e d o m i n a n t in the East, b u t there are mentions of it also in the West. T h e primary biblical foundation for this u n d e r s t a n d i n g is J o h n 3.5, ' N o one can enter the kingdom of G o d w i t h o u t being born of water and Spirit.' In Titus 3.5, baptism is referred to as 'the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.' In the late second century, Irenaeus of Lyon referred to the baptismal font as a womb. 2 In early third-century Carthage, North Africa (in what is n o w Tunisia), Tertullian wrote extensively of baptism as birth, and he described the baptized as 'little fish' w h o begin their life in the water and w h o cannot survive except by remaining 'in the water' with Christ, the 'great Fish' 3 ; indeed, Tertullian's emphasis on water is dramatized by his contrast between fish, which can only live in water, and vipers, asps, and other serpents, which live in dry and waterless places. 4 Fish imagery was also used by Ambrose, two centuries later in Milan. After referring to the living creatures in the waters of creation, he said to the newly baptized: 'These were born in the beginning, at the creation; but this gift was kept for you: that the waters should regenerate you into grace, even as those other waters generated into life. Imitate the fish; it received a lesser grace than you, but you should still consider it a marvel. It is in the sea and above the waves . . . On the sea the tempest rages, violent winds blow; but the fish swims on. It does not drown because it is used to swimming. In the same way, this world is the sea for you. It has various currents, huge waves, fierce storms. You too m u s t be a fisn, so that the waves of this world d o not drown you.' 5

1

2 3

4 5

p r i m a r y s o u r c e s f o r p r a y e r s o v e r t h e w a t e r in t h e A m e r i c a n Lutheran Book of Worship ( 1 9 7 8 ) . t h e A m e r i c a n E p i s c o p a l Book of Common Prayer (1979). t h e C h u r c h o f E n g l a n d Alternative Service Book ( 1 9 8 0 ) , t h e C a n a d i a n A n g l i c a n Book of Alternative Services ( 1 9 8 5 ) , t h e A n g l i c a n A New Zealand Prayer Book ( 1 9 8 9 ) . t h e S o u t h A f r i c a n Anglican Prayer Book ( 1 9 8 9 ) , a n d t h e A m e r i c a n M e t h o d i s t Book of Common Worship ( 1 9 9 3 ) . A s i m i l a r p r a y e r is a l s o u s e d in t h e c o n t e m p o r a r y R o m a n C a t h o l i c b a p t i s m a l rite. K a v a n a g h ( 1 9 7 8 ) , p . 4 6 . F o r biblical a n d p a t r i s t i c b a c k g r o u n d o n t h e s y m b o l i s m o f t h e f o n t a s t o m b a n d w o m b , s e e B e d a r d a n d Riley. S i m i l a r , a l t h o u g h less f o c u s e d , i n f o r m a t i o n is p r o v i d e d in B u r n i s h . Adversus haereses 4. It is i n t e r e s t i n g t o n o t e t h a t t h e r e is a p a v e m e n t m o s a i c f r o m a n e a r l y t h i r d - c e n t u r v C h r i s t i a n c a t a c o m b in H a d r u m e t u m ( n o w k n o w n as S o u s s e , T u n i s i a ) w h i c h p r e s e n t s t h i s i d e a w i t h m a r i n e i c o n o g r a p h y . A d o l p h i n in t h e c e n t r e r e p r e s e n t s t h e c r u c i f i e d Christ. An a n c h o r replaces t h e cross, c o n f l a t i n g b a p t i s m a n d crucifixion. T h e small fish r e p r e s e n t b a p t i z e d C h r i s t i a n s . A d d i t i o n a l l y , a m u l t i t u d e of fish a r c d e p i c t e d in m o s a i c o n t h e s u r f a c e o f t h e l a t e - s i x t h - c e n t u r y f o n t f r o m Kélibia. T u n i s i a (see c h a p t e r 3). De Baptismo I. De Sacramentis 111:3: E n g l i s h text in Y a r n o l d , p. 121 ( 2 n d ed.. p . 1 2 1 ) .

Water and Baptism

7

Tertullian's birth imagery was picked u p later by other North Africans, including Cyprian, Optatus, and Augustine. In north-eastern Italy in the mid-fourth century, Zeno of Verona (but w h o was born in Africa) wrote of the baptismal font as the w o m b of the virgin mother, the Church. 1 Such font-as-womb imagery was also used in North Africa by Augustine and Quodvultdeus. In late fourthcentury Milan, Ambrose, whose principal understanding of baptism was paschal, also referred to baptism as ' e n t e r i n g . . . mother's w o m b and being born again.' 2 In Rome in the mid-fifth century, Leo the Great also called baptism a birth and the font a womb. 3 Baptism is also a bath, a washing (1 Corinthians 6.11; Ephesians 5.26; 2 Peter 1.9), a sacramental purification f r o m sin. In mid-second-century Rome, Justin described baptism as a washing. 4 Half a century later in Carthage, Tertullian m a d e it clear that this is no ordinary bath, however: 'The flesh is washed that the soul may be m a d e spotless.' 5 Later in the third century, Cyprian of Carthage also wrote of baptism as washing, adding that 'the water ought to be first cleansed and sanctified by the bishop that it may be able to wash away in its baptism the sins of the man w h o is baptized.' 6 In the eighth-century Gallo-Roman Gelasian Sacramentary, the prayer consecrating the f o n t calls it an 'unspotted womb', b u t then switches to bath imagery: 'May the f o u n t be alive, tne water regenerating, the wave purifying, so that all w h o shall be washed in this saving laver by the operation of the Holy Spirit within them may be brought to the mercy of perfect cleansing.' 7 But by the fourth century, the p r e d o m i n a n t understanding of baptism, especially in the West, was paschal: to be baptized is to be joined to the death and resurrection of Christ (Romans 6.3-5; Colossians 2.12). T h e three meanings— birth, bath, burial—are not unrelated, however. T h e baptismal bath is in fact a drowning flood (1 Peter 3.20-21); the new birth m u s t be preceded by the death of the old person. As St. Paul wrote: 'Do you not know that all of us w h o have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.' (Romans 6.3-5; NRSV) Already in third-century Egypt, Origen had reflected Romans 6 in writing of baptism 8 and had referred to the font as a sepulchre 9 , but the paschal understanding became the cantm firmus in the fourth-century mystagogical 1

Invitations to the Baptismal Font IV. De mysteriis IX:59; English text in Srawley, p.151, 3 Forexamples, seeSermones 24, In nativitatem Domini; 25. In nativitate Domini; and 70. De passione Domini. 4 First Apology* 61. 5 De Resurrectione Carnis 8; English text in Whitaker, p. 10. 6 Letter 70, to Januarius, 1; English text in Finn, p.138. 7 Book LXL1V; Whitaker, p. 187. 8 Homily on Exodus 5:2. 9 In Romanos 5:8. 2

8

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modern

writings of Cyril ot J e r u s a l e m , C h r y s o s t o m , T h e o d o r e o f M o p s u e s t i a , a n d A m b r o s e . In late f o u r t h - c e n t u r y M i l a n , A m b r o s e said to his neophytes, ' B e c a u s e you are i m m e r s e d , t h e sentence, "You are dust and to dust you shall return ", is served . . . S o it is that the f o n t is a kind o f grave.' 1 I le elaborated, '. . . you w e r e i m m e r s e d : which m e a n s t h a t you were buried with Christ.' 2 A few decades later in N o r t h Africa, Augustine (who had been baptized in Milan by A m b r o s e ) c o m bined the birth and paschal images o f b a p t i s m : 'All w h o attain to this grace die t h e r e b y to sin . . . and they are thereby alive by being reborn in t h e baptismal font, just as C h r i s t rose again from the sepulchre.' 3 Also in the fourth century. Cyril o f J e r u s a l e m c o m b i n e d the motifs ot birth and death. S p e a k i n g to n e o p h y t e s o f their triple s u b m e r s i o n , Cvril c o m m e n t e d : 'In o n e and the s a m e action you died and were born; the water o f salvation b e c a m e both t o m b and m o t h e r tor you . . . A single m o m e n t achieves both ends, and y o u r begetting was s i m u l t a n e o u s witn y o u r death.' 4 In the mid-fifth century. Pope Leo the G r e a t , d e f e n d i n g t h e practice o f baptism at the Easter Vigil, wrote, 'in the rite of baptism death c o m e s from the slaying o f sin, and t h e triple i m m e r s i o n imitates the three days o f burial, and the rising o u t o f the water is like his rising f r o m the t o m b . ' 5 T h i s baptismal resurrection into new life in Christ has an eschatological note: it is proleptic e n t r a n c e into Paradise. 6 W h i l e this u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f baptism is stronger in the East 7 than in t h e West, it is not a b s e n t in the West. In tne third century in C a r t h a g e , Cyprian wrote: T h e C h u r c h , setting forth the likeness o f paradise, includes within her four walls fruit-bearing trees . . . T h e s e trees she waters with f o u r rivers, that is, with the f o u r G o s p e l s , wherewith, bv a celestial i n u n d a t i o n , she bestows the grace o f saving Baptism.' 8 Monns or BAPI ISM

Four t e r m s have been used to designate the various m o d e s of baptism: s u b m e r sion, i m m e r s i o n , affusion, and aspersion. A b o u t the first two there has been u n e n d i n g c o n f u s i o n and debate. Submersion is s o m e t i m e s called 'total i m m e r s i o n ' , thus referring to the fact that in s u b m e r s i o n a person's entire body is pushed c o m p l e t e l y u n d e r t h e water. A n o t h e r c o m m o n English term for this m o d e is 'dipping'. S y m b o l i c a l l y and experientiallv. s u b m e r s i o n is the fullest representation o f the paschal m e a n i n g o f 11:19: Y a r n o l d . p i 17 ( 2 n d c d „ p . l 13).

1

De Saeramentis

2

De Sacramentis

3

Enchiridion

4

Mystagogic

5

Epistle /6; Finn, p.81.

11:20: Y a r n o l d . p.l 17 ( 2 n d ed.. p.l 18).

8:42; Finn, p. 152. Catecheses,

S e r m o n 2 : 4 ; Y a r n o l d , p.76 ( 2 n d cd., p.78).

6

S e e S t a u f f e r . ' F o n t s : B a p t i s m , Pascha. a n d Paradise'.

7

A particularly rich e x a m p l e is O d e 11 ot t h e Giles of Solomon, from second-century l a s t Syria. S e e t h e t r a n s l a t i o n by J a m e s C h a r l e s w o r t h , q u o t e d in T h o m a s M . Finn, Early

Christian

Baptism

and the Catechumenate:

West and

East Syria

(I .i turcica I Press,

C o l l e g e v i l l e , M i n n e s o t a . 1992), p p . 1 1 7 - 1 1 8 . 8

Tpistle 7 2 : 1 0 ; t r a n s l a t i o n in A l e x a n d e r R o b e r t s a n d J a m e s D o n a l d s o n , (eds,). The Stctne

Fathers,

Ante-

V o l u m e V ( C h a r l e s S c r i b n e r ' s S o n s . \evv York. 1 9 2 * ) . p . 3 8 2 .

Water and Baptism

l)

b a p t i s m . T o b e s u b m e r s e d is to be b u r i e d u n d e r t h e w a t e r ; it is ( a l m o s t ) t o d r o w n . S u b m e r s i o n is also an e f f e c t i v e a c t o f n e w birth, as t h e c a n d i d a t e c o m e s u p o u t o f t h e w a t e r as o u t o f t h e w o m b . S u b m e r s i o n is also t h e m o s t c o m p l e t e ritual a c t o f b a p t i s m as c l e a n s i n g . For s u b m e r s i o n to be p r a c t i s e d , t h e w a t e r m u s t be q u i t e deep. (See chapter 4 regarding the practice o f submersion.) In immersion, t h e a d u l t c a n d i d a t e s t a n d s o r k n e e l s in w a t e r ( u s u a l l y o f a d e p t h b e t w e e n t h e a n k l e s a n d t h e waist) w h i l e w a t e r is p o u r e d o v e r t h e h e a d , o r t h e h e a d is p u s h e d partially i n t o t h e w a t e r . W i t h an i n f a n t , t h e b o d y ( e s p e c i a l l y t h e h e a d ) is l o w e r e d partially into t h e water, o r t h e b o d y is partially l o w e r e d i n t o t h e w a t e r as w a t e r is p o u r e d o v e r t h e h e a d . I m m e r s i o n is n o t as full a sign o f a n y o f b a p t i s m ' s m e a n i n g s as is s u b m e r s i o n . It is not known h o w J e s u s was baptized, though the m o s t ancient artistic representations show i m m e r s i o n , n o t submersion. It is also n o t known h o w Baptism in apostolic and post-apostolic times was done. T h e earliest fonts in the West, in the third and fourth centuries, were often n o t deep enough for easy s u b m e r s i o n . By the fifth and sixth centuries, s o m e fonts were deep e n o u g h for submersion, although it is not known in m o s t places w h e t h e r submersion was actually practised. Part o f t h e c o n f u s i o n b e t w e e n s u b m e r s i o n a n d i m m e r s i o n is t h a t in m a n y a n c i e n t texts in t h e W e s t , it is difficult o r i m p o s s i b l e t o d e t e r m i n e w h i c h m o d e was m e a n t . T h e n t h e a r c h a e o l o g i c a l e v i d e n c e is crucial, b u t u n f o r t u n a t e l y m m a n y places it has b e e n w h o l l y o r partially d e s t r o y e d . In a d d i t i o n t o k n o w i n g t h e size a n d d e p t h o f t h e f o n t , it is n e c e s s a r y to k n o w t h e w a t e r s o u r c e a n d w h e t h e r t h e r e was a drain. In t h e a b s e n c e o f s u c h e v i d e n c e , it is s i m p l y i m p o s s i b l e t o k n o w w h e r e s u b m e r s i o n was used, a n d w h e r e i m m e r s i o n w a s u s e d . It is clear, h o w e v e r , f r o m b o t h texts a n d a r c h a e o l o g y , t h a t in b a p t i s m in t h e patristic a n d early m e d i e v a l p e r i o d s an a b u n d a n t a m o u n t o f w a t e r w a s n o r m a l l y u s e d . Affusion is a m o d e in w h i c h w a t e r is p o u r e d o v e r t h e c a n d i d a t e ' s h e a d . A f f u s i o n b e g a n to r e p l a c e i m m e r s i o n , e s p e c i a l l y in c o l d n o r t h e r n c o u n t r i e s , as t h e b a p t i s m o f i n f a n t s b e c a m e c o m m o n in t h e M i d d l e Ages. A c c o r d i n g t o J . G . Davies. by t h e f o u r t e e n t h c e n t u r y a f f u s i o n was c o m m o n in F r a n c e , w h i l e it did n o t b e c o m e w i d e s p r e a d in Italy until t h e f i f t e e n t h c e n t u r y , n o r in E n g l a n d u n t i l t h e s i x t e e n t h . 1 M a r t i n L u t h e r e n c o u r a g e d a return t o s u b m e r s i o n in s i x t e e n t h c e n t u r y G e r m a n y , as a m o r e c o m p l e t e sign o f t h e radical p a s c h a l m e a n i n g o f baptism.2 Likewise the C h u r c h o f England's 1549, 1552, a n a 1662 Prayer B o o k s also c a l l e d for d i p p i n g . H o w e v e r , it was n o t until t h e late t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y t h a t c o n g r e g a t i o n s o f liturgical c h u r c h e s h a v e b e g u n o n c e again p r a c t i s i n g e i t h e r submersion or immersion. Aspersion, o r s p r i n k l i n g , is t h e m o s t m i n i m a l m o d e o f b a p t i s m . P r i o r t o t h e late M i d d l e Ages, it was u s e d o n l y in clinical b a p t i s m s ( t h a t is, o f d y i n g p e r s o n s , f o r which Cyprian o f Carthage defended the practice.11 lowever, sprinkling was the 1

The Architectural

2

See his Larue Catechism, section o n B a p t i s m ; ' T h e H o l v a n d Blessed S a c r a m e n t ot Baptism' ( 1 5 1 9 ) , Luther's Works. Vol. 35 (Fortress Press, Philadelphia, 1960), p.29; T h e Babylonian Captivity o f the C h u r c h ' ( 1 5 2 0 ) , Luther's Works. Vol. 36 (Fortress Press. P h i l a d e l p h i a . 1 9 5 9 ) , p p . 6 7 - 6 8 ; and L u t h e r ' s 1 5 2 3 b a p t i s m a l ritc. Luther's H - M ' i . Vol. 53 (l-ortress Press, P h i l a d e l p h i a , 1 9 6 5 ) , p . 1 0 0 .

10

Setting of Baptism,

p.73.

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modem

which Cyprian of Carthage defended the practice. 1 However, sprinkling was the normal parish practice by the Renaissance, and fonts had become tiny. 1 he result was a minimalistic understanding of baptism. Renewed baptismal rites in the late twentieth century have called for a more abundant use of water, and have often suggested submersion or at least immersion. T h e landmark ecumenical document, Baptism, Eucharist and Ministiy. said clearly that 'In the celebration of baptism the symbolic dimension ot water should be taken seriously and not minimalizea.' 2 MOVLMLVI

:\

I Ml kl H A L

Fonts are containers designed to hold the water in which baptism is administered. In addition to the mode of baptism, two other movements in the water are important with regard to the design of fonts. These movements are the twin actions ot descent/ascent, and the act of passage through the water. All three ha^e symbolic meanings. The earliest baptisteries in the West, in R o m e and Milan, had in-ground pools with steps. T h e steps were not merely utilitarian; indeed, sometimes the early fonts were so shallow that steps were not even actually necessary. It would seem that the steps were installed for symbolic purposes: in order for the candidate to experience descent into burial with Christ, and ascent into new life in the resurrection. Ambrose and other patristic writers referred frequently to 'goingdown' into the water. It is possible to conceptualize the meanings of baptism in this period in terms of descent from the world and ascent into the body of Christ. 3 In time the number of steps was interpreted svmbolicallv. T h e experience of passage through the waters was also important in the patristic period, no doubt a reference to the passage of the Israel ites through the Red Sea. Ambrose wrote: 'He w h o passes through the waters of this font—that is. from earthly things to heavenly (for this is the meaning of this passage, this pasch: it is the passage of the person who is baptized; it is a passage from sin to life, from guilt to grace, from vileness to holiness—he w h o passes through these waters does not die; he rises again. 4 •Most paleo-Christian fonts in the West had steps 011 at least two sides, perhaps enabling the candidate to experience passage through the water from the old life to the new.

1 2

3

4

Letter 69: 12. Faith a n d O r d e r P a p e r \ o . I l l (World C o u n c i l ot" C h u r c h e s . G e n e v a , 1982) B a p t i s m V . I 8 , p.6. See s c h e m a t i c in W a y n e A. M e c k s , The First Urban Christians (Yale L nivcrsitv Press, N e w H a v e n , C o n n e c t i c u t , 1983) p. 156. De Sacramentis 1.12; Yarnold. p. 104 ( 2 n d ed., pp. 104-105).

Water and Baptism

11

2. Baptismal Space Baptism is by water and the Spirit (John 3,5). While the Holy Spirit can be anywhere and everywhere, water needs ¡.place to be, a container. In nature, of course, water's containers are oceans and seas, lakes and ponds, streams and rivers. It was in those large natural water'vessels' that Christian baptisms first occurred. Jesus was baptized in the River Jordan. Most other N e w 'Iestament accounts of baptisms d o not indicate where they took place. The baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch by Philip h a p p e n e d simply when they 'came to s o m e water,' and the two 'went down into the water,' where Philip baptized him (Acts 8.36-8). In Acts 16.13 -15, probably Lydia and her family were baptized in a river outside a gate to Philippi (in what is now Greece). Just as the writers ot the N e w Iestament seem to have assumed that baptisms would be done in natural bodies of water and thus did not exert much effort in describing the places, so too in post-apostolic times. In the first two or three centuries of Christianity, the usual sites for baptism were also natural bodies of water: streams, rivers, lakes, and the sea. T h e Didache, a church manual probably written in Syna sometime between A.D. 60 and A.D. 1601, said that baptism in the Triune N a m e is to happen 'in running water,' but added that, if there is no running water, 'other water' could be used, and if there was neither, water could be poured. 2 T h e text added that cold water was better than warm. In Rome in about A.D. 160. the First Apology o f j u s t i n Martyr indicated simply that baptism occurred 'where there is water'. 3 Approximately A.D. 215, in Rome, the Apostolic Tradition attributed to Hippolytus 4 specified that the water should be 'pure and flowing'5. T h e presbyter was to stand 'at the water', as the deacon and candidate went 'down . . . into the water'. 6 It is not known w h e t h e r this was in a natural body of water or perhaps in a pool in a building or courtyard. In Carthage, North Africa, sometime between A.D. 160-220, Iertullian wrote that it 'makes no difference' whether baptism happens 'in a sea or a pool, a stream or a fount, a lake or a trough . . ,'7 Here, then, is acknowledgment that both natural bodies of water and constructed pools were being used for baptism. As early as the second century, while there were persecutions, sometimes baptism may have occurred in the baths and courtyard fountains of private h o m e s and perhaps in small public baths. 8 1 2 3 4

5 6 7

8

The Didache w a s p e r h a p s a r e d a c t e d text by m u l t i p l e p e o p l e at d i f f e r e n t t i m e s . C h a p t e r 7; W h i t a k e r . p . l . 61, W h i t a k e r , p.2. It is n o t k n o w n w h e t h e r Apostolic Tradition w a s d e s c r i b i n g actual b a p t i s m a l p r a c t i c e in R o m e , or w h a t its a u t h o r c o n s i d e r e d to b e t h e ideal. XX1:2; W h i t a k e r , p.5. XXI:1 1: W h i t a k e r , p.5. On Baptism 4; text in A l e x a n d e r R o b e r t s a n d J a m e s D o n a l d s o n , (eds.). The Ante-Nicene Fathers, III ( C h a r l e s S c r i b n e r ' s S o n s , N e w York, 1918), p p . 6 7 0 - 6 7 1 K r a u t h e i m e r (1986). p.24.

12

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modern

The o l d e s t archaeological e v i d e n c e of a b a p t i s m a l f o n t per se is in t h e m i d third-century h o u s e c h u r c h in D u r a - E u r o p o s , in w h a t is n o w Syria. The f o n t is rectangular, w h i c h s e e m s to have b e e n t h e n o r m a l s h a p e of t h e m o s t a n c i e n t fonts. 1 In t h e f o u r t h c e n t u r y , particularly a f t e r t h e R o m a n E m p e r o r C o n s t a n t i n e e n d e d t h e p e r s e c u t i o n s in A.IX 313. special places for Baptism w e r e c o n s t r u c t e d o r a d a p t e d . D u r i n g t h a t period, adult b a p t i s m was t h e n o r m , lb a c c o m m o d a t e all of t h e c a n d i d a t e s for b a p t i s m , a n d t o p r o v i d e privacy, since t h e y were baptized n a k e d , t h e baptisteries in t h e W e s t w e r e usually d e t a c h e d o r o n l y loosely a t t a c h e d to t h e c h u r c h buildings. The f o n t s w e r e i n - g r o u n d pools. T h e earliest and m o s t i m p o r t a n t baptisteries in t h e W e s t were in R o m e ( w h e r e t h e m o s t a n c i e n t f o n t was r o u n d ) a n d M i l a n (with o c t a g o n a l fonts). T h r o u g h t h e sixth a n d into t h e seventh c e n t u r y , f o n t s w e r e a l m o s t always built in t h e g r o u n d . The sense of d e s c e n t into a n d a s c e n t o u t of t h e w a t e r was im p o r t a n t in b o t h t h e o l o g y a n d practice. A variety of s h a p e s o c c u r r e d , with g e o g r a p h i c a l d i f f e r e n c e s . For e x a m p l e , in Italy a n d France, o c t a g o n a l a n d hexagonal f o n t s w e r e m o s t c o m m o n . In early C h r i s t i a n Tunisia, t h e r e were m a n y c r u c i f o r m a n d q u a t r i l o b e fonts, as well as hexagonal ones. C i r c u l a r a n d o t h e r s h a p e s of f o n t s w e r e f o u n d in a variety of places. In early c e n t u r i e s a f t e r C o n s t a n t i n e , baptisteries in the W e s t w e r e located in cathedrals, since t h e b i s h o p s presided at b a p t i s m s . H o w e v e r , as t h e C h u r c h grew, t h e r e w e r e n o t e n o u g h b i s h o p s to a c c o m m o d a t e all t h e c a t e c h u m e n s , a n d presbyters of parishes w e r e p e r m i t t e d to a d m i n i s t e r t h e w a t e r bath ( t h o u g h not t h e c o n s i g n a t i o n , a n d h e n c e t h e b e g i n n i n g of t h e s e p a r a t i o n of b a p t i s m f r o m c o n f i r m a t i o n 2 ) . As a result, baptisteries began to be built at parish c h u r c h e s . 3 M a n y of t h e fifth- a n d sixth-century baptisteries e x t a n t today in Tunisia w e r e n o t associated with cathedrals. By t h e e i g h t h c e n t u r y in m a n y areas in t h e West, a d u l t b a p t i s m h a d largely been replaced by i n f a n t b a p t i s m , partly d u e to t h e high i n f a n t m o r t a l i t y rate a n d parental fears resulting f r o m t h e d o c t r i n e of original sin. Fonts n o l o n g e r n e e d e d to be large e n o u g h for t h e s u b m e r s i o n or i m m e r s i o n of adults. T h u s began a decline in b a p t i s m a l t h e o l o g y a n d b a p t i s m a l p r a c t i c e — a n d in t h e size a n d design of baptismal f o n t s . In s o m e places existing f o n t s were m a d e s m a l l e r In o t h e r places, n e w f o n t s were c o n s t r u c t e d — b u t instead of pools w h i c h w e r e c o m pletely in t h e g r o u n d , f o n t s with sides partially a b o v e t h e g r o u n d w e r e built. Eventually t h e n o r m b e c a m e pools w h i c h were totally a b o v e t h e g r o u n d . For a time they r e t a i n e d t h e visual sense of b e i n g pools, and i n f a n t s u b m e r s i o n a n d i m m e r s i o n were practised. In at least o n e , in Cividale, Italv, even a d u l t s u b m e r sion could still be practised, 4 I lowever, f o n t s c o n t i n u e d to b e c o m e smaller a n d smaller. Rather t h a n looking like pools o r basins, t h e y began to r e s e m b l e tanks a n d tubs. By t h e twelfth a n d t h i r t e e n t h c e n t u r i e s they were set on bases o r o n e or m o r e pedestals. In the 1

Sec c h a p t e r 3 t o r d e s c r i p t i o n . See Fisher a n d Stevick. ' R e g a r d i n g t h e s i t u a t i o n in N o r t h Africa, see Duval (1989), 4 Sec c h a p t e r 2

Baptismal

Space

13

R o m a n e s q u e and G o t h i c periods in E u r o p e , these fonts could still a c c o m m o d a t e infant i m m e r s i o n (and often, i n f a n t s u b m e r s i o n ) . M o s t fonts during this t i m e were sculpted s t o n e 1 , but s o m e were w o o d , and in E n g l a n d there were n u m e r o u s decorated lead tubs (which were m o s t frequently round). 2 As affusion (pouring) replaced i m m e r s i o n and s u b m e r s i o n by the late sixteenth century, fonts b e c a m e m i n i m a l . In t i m e they resembled birdbaths, t h e n salad bowls, and finally teacups. T h e rich biblical and patristic understandings o f baptism as birth, burial, and bath had been lost. It b e c a m e i m p o s s i b l e to interpret the font as w o m b o r t o m b o r even as bathtub. O n e c a n n o t bathe, not to speak o f drown, in a fingerbowl. This m i n i m a l i s m in fonts is o n e i m p o r t a n t factor in parishioners' m i n i m a l , if not magical, c o n c e p t s ot baptism. M o s t people in the C h u r c h today understand baptism merely as a 'nice' c e r e m o n y with gurgling babies, rather than as a consequential event o f death and n e w life. T h e rich biblical u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f water and t h e profound patristic theology o f baptism have largely disappeared from the life o f the C h u r c h . Through the M i d d l e Ages, deteriorating baptismal practices led to trivial fonts, which in turn has had a deleterious effect on the people's understanding ot baptism. People do learn from w h a t they see; t h e q u e s t i o n is ivbat t h e y learn from t h e fonts which they see in their parish churches. "Iwo m a j o r factors in the late twentieth century have resulted in n e w a t t e n t i o n to the theology o f baptism as well as to providing fonts c o n s i s t e n t with that theology: (1) Vatican II and the resulting recovery o f the adult c a t e c h u m e n a t e — first in the R o m a n C a t h o l i c C h u r c h , and s u b s e q u e n t l y also in the Anglican and Lutheran C o m m u n i o n s , and (2) publication a n d reception o f the W o r l d C o u n c i l o f C h u r c h e s ' Faith and O r d e r paper, Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry. At last the trend toward m i n i m a l i s m is b e g i n n i n g to reverse. T h e r e is growing e c u m e n i c a l awareness o f the profound m e a n i n g o f b a p t i s m and therefore o f the s y m b o l i s m o f water, with the result that parishes are recognizing the need f o r fonts which e n a b l e the a b u n d a n t use o f water. O n c e again, after so m a n y centuries, fonts are being designed and c o n s t r u c t e d which a c c o m m o d a t e the i m m e r s i o n and even s u b m e r s i o n o f adults as well as infants. si I APIS

S i n c e the third centurv, baptismal fonts have been built in various s h a p e s 3 and in m a n y sizes. T h e shapes o f early-Christian fonts included the simple to the c o m plex, and can be c o n s i d e r e d in five basic categories: 1. S i m p l e : rectangle, square, circle 2. Polygonal: hexagon, o c t a g o n 3. C r u c i f o r m : cross, q u a d r i l o b e 4. Polylobe: with six, eight, o r twelve lobes 5. O t h e r 1 2 3

See Nordstrom. S e e B o n d , c h a p t e r V I I ; a n d Wall, p p . 2 7 6 - 2 8 4 . An i n t e r e s t i n g and helpful, a l b e i t i n c o m p l e t e a n d s o m e t i m e s e r r o n e o u s , t y p o l o g i c a l classification o f fonts bv s h a p e is p r o v i d e d in K h a t c h a t r i a n ( 1 9 8 2 ) . p p . 6 9 - 7 8 .

14

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modem

Each of these shapes itself can be simple, or altered in some way. For examples: concave sides might appear on a square or a hexagon; a cross shape might nave squared or rounded 'arms'; quadrilobe fonts have lobes of varying lengths. In addition, two shapes might be combined in a single font. Examples: a font of o n e form at the rim might have a different form at the bottom; a quadrilobe might be set within a circle; a cross might be inscribed with a circle. Examples of all of these shapes and variations will be given in the following chapter. Baptisteries as well as fonts reflect a variety of shapes and complexity. In some, the u p p e r level of the building differs from its g r o u n d plan. In others, the interior differs in plan f r o m the exterior. Also, in their various shapes 1 , some baptisteries had single apses, s o m e had niches of rectangular a n d / o r semicircular shape, some had ambulatories, some had columns with arcades, some had columns supporting ciboria (canopies) over the fonts, and so on. W h e n considering the shapes of fonts vis-a-vis tne baptisteries in which they were placed, the symbolic possibilities and therefore multivalent understandings of baptism are both rich and complex. ARCHITECTURAL ANTECEDENTS

Ancient baptisteries and fonts had architectural antecedents in the R o m a n world. 2 The rectangular font at Dura-Europos resembled both basins in the Roman baths in the same town 3 and R o m a n (as well as Syrian) tombs. 4 Some early fonts were built over baths, convenient because both the water source and drain would be in place. Some baptisteries and fonts in the fourth century, including at the Lateran in Rome 5 , seem to have been modelled after baths. But why? Was it because of the understanding of baptism as bathing, or was it simply because the baths suggested a practical way to construct a facility for a large volume of water? T he rationale of the designers is not known. 1 lowever, it does seem that Roman public bathing practices influenced to some degree early Christian baptismal practices, and thus it is not surprising that this culture would also have influenced baptismal architecture. 6 While the first stage of the Lateran baptistery in Rome was influenced by bath architecture 7 , the other most important ancient baptistery in the West, in Milan, was influenced instead by burial places, specifically by imperial mausolea— buildings for the burial of members of the imperial family. 8 Once again, however, what is not known is why the baptistery was built on the octagonal plan of a ' For plans, see Khatchatrian (1962); for a typology of shapes, see Khatchatrian (1982). See Krautheimer (1969); Krautheimer (1980), p.50; Khatchatrian (1982); Mirahella Roberti (1984); Fete; Swift; and Stauffer. 'Cultural Settings of Architecture for Baptism in the Early Church'. 3 Kraeling, p.26. See also Krautheimer (1969). p. 132. 4 Hopkins, pp.249ff. 5 See chapter 3. 6 Fête. 7 Fête. 8 Mirahella Roberti (1984). 2

Baptismal Space

/5

nearby mausoleum. S o m e scholars have been quick to say that it was to give architectural expression to the paschal understanding of baptism, and that therefore using tne plan of a burial edifice was only natural. But it is also possible that the octagonal plan was simply a good structural design for both types of centralized space. CANOPIES AND COVERS

In the early Christian penod, fonts were quite often surmounted by a dome-type canopy, commonly termed a ciborium, T h e y were free-standing, supported ny columns (usually numbering between f o u r a n d twelve). S o m e of the ciboria may have been decorated with mosaic. In the late medieval period, many fonts were once again surmounted by canopies, often as a means of giving visual prominence to the font. Unfortunately, the canopies rather than tne water in the font became the primary visual symbol of Baptism. Sometimes the canopies were so monumental that the fonts themselves were barely noticeable. Actual font covers originated in the thirteenth century. T h e medieval people had begun to steal the consecrated water in fonts to use for witchcraft and black magic. A canon law was enacted requiring locked covers on fonts. Originally the covers were flat, but eventually they were recognized for their decorative possibilities, and they took on monumental shapes of their own. 1

1

See Bond, p a n IV.

¡6

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

3. Early Christian Fonts In the last chapter a brief survey of the history of fonts was given. In the present chapter examples f r o m this history in the West will be described. Primary attention will be given to early Christian fonts (third to eighth centuries) in Italy, France, and Tunisia, with a few also from Switzerland. S o m e have been excavated and restored, while others need re-excavation. W h e r e possible, measurements are those taken by the a u t h o r in situ. For fonts in which damage or the need for re-excavation precludes such measurements (especially for depths), dimensions have been drawn from excavation reports or other sources. T h e early Christian fonts described here are organized by shape, in two types of semi-chronological order. First, the shapes themselves are presented in approximate chronological order according to when they first appeared; for example, the rectangular shape is the oldest, while the q u a d n l o b e is relatively late. Second, within the sections by shape, the fonts are presented in relative chronological order. It should be noted, however, that it is often not possible to provide precise dates, even by century. In many cases, there is no determinative archaeological evidence for dating, and dates are contested for a n u m b e r of fonts. Early Christian fonts which were transformed over the years f r o m o n e shape into a n o t h e r are included after the section on 'other shapes'. These transformations are often quite interesting, even when they sometimes entailed reducing the size of the font. Several examples: The original rectangular font in Geneva, Switzerland, was soon transformed into an octagonal shape. T h e early hexagonal font in the church of Servus in Sbeitla, Tunisia, was later m a d e into a smaller quadrilobe. A circular font in Aosta, Italy, was m a d e into a cruciform pool, and then into an octagon. T h e symbolism of the various shapes is briefly discussed in each section. However, Richard Krautheimer's caution a b o u t over-interpretation should be noted: '. . . the symbolical significance is something which merely accompanied the particular form which was chosen for the structure. It accompanied it as a more or less uncertain connotation which was only dimly visible and whose specific interpretation was not pecessarily agreed upon. Yet as a connotation it was nearly always coupled with the pattern which had been chosen. Its very vagueness explains the variety of interpretations given to one and the same form either by one or by different authors.' 1 RECTANGULAR FONTS

As already noted, the rectangle is the most ancient font shape; the earliest example is mid-third century. The rectangle was the c o m m o n shape of ancient sarcophagi and burial niches, and it remains the shape of contemporary coffins 1

K r a u t h e i m e r (1969), p. 122.

Early Christian Fonts

17

in the twentieth century. Rectangular fonts have thus often been interpreted with reference to baptism as burial with Christ (Romans 6.4; Galatians 2.20a; Colossians 3.3).1 While the rectangle was the c o m m o n form-for fonts in the third and fourth centuries, most of t n e m have been destroyed over the years. Only a few of the most ancient ones remain.

Dura-Europos, Syria This mid-third-century font, extremely important because it is the oldest to be found by archaeologists, was in a house church in which one room (also approximately rectangular) had been transformed into a baptistery. T h e font was installed against the west wall of the room. As noted in the last chapter, this tubtype font with its niche resembled both Roman and Syrian tombs, and the way it was constructed matched that of basins in R o m a n baths in Dura. 2 The font was an irregular rectangle measuring 1.63 metres long, with a slightly varying width of approximately 1 metre; it was about .95 metres deep. 3 Faced in white waterproof plaster, it was not connected to a water source, and no drain was f o u n d by excavators. Ledges within the font permitted the candidate to sit, bend over, and be baptized by immersion or pouring. 4 A canopy, supported by two columns and two pilasters, s u r m o u n t e d the font. Painted blue and studded with white stars, the canopy vault resembled the sky; the ceiling of the baptistery was also painted in this manner. T h e wall above the font contained a painted scene of a shepherd with sheep. Other walls in the baptistery contained paintings of other narrative biblical scenes 5 , including the healing of the paralytic. Adam and Eve, the walking on water, a garden scene (perhaps Paradise?), the w o m a n at the well, David and Goliath, and a sequence of resurrection scenes.

San Ponziano Catacomb, Rome, Italy This third-century catacomb includes, in a low level, what undoubtedly was a baptismal pool, variously dated f r o m the fifth to the eighth centuries. It served a small c o m m u n i t y outside the walls of Rome. 6 W h e n it was in use, the pool was somewhat less than 2 metres long and a b o u t 1 metre wide, with a depth of about 1 metre. 7 Fed by a spring or an underground stream, the baptistery nas been greatly damaged by heavily infiltrating water 8 , and can no longer be measured safely. 1 2 5 4 5 6

7 8

For example. Davies (1962), p.19, See chapter 2 section on architectural antecedents. Kraeling, p.26. Kraeling, pp. 27, 145, and 148. For details, see Kraeling, pp. 40-88. U m b e r t o M. Fasola. secretary of the Pontifical Commission on Sacred Archaeology, in personal letter to the author, 27 December 1984. See also P. Testini, Anheologia Cristiana (Desclee, Rome), p. 190. Varying dimensions are given in Cote, p.152; and Rogers, p.335. For drawings of the baptistery prior to flooding damage, see DACL (Tome 2, Pt. 1), column 407; Brown, p.46; Bond, p.6; and Cote, frontispiece.

18

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modern

On the upper rear wall o f the font was a fresco (now destroyed by the rising water) o f a large cross. O v e r t h e font was a fresco o f the baptism o f Christ, showing him in nearly waist-deep water; on the side are an angel and a deer. T h e latter is presumed to be a reference to the catechumen's thirsting for God, just as 'a deer longs for flowing streams' (Psalm 42.1-2).

Other Rectangular Fonts

Stage 1 o f font I in Aquileia, Italy (see Illustration 9, page 42); stage 1 o f font I in Geneva, Switzerland; and stage 2 of the Zurzach, Switzerland, font were rectangular; see below in section on 'Fonts Transformed'. CIRCULAR

FONTS

Round fonts, which in the West originated in fourth-century Rome, were more c o m m o n in the East than the West. In North Africa, there is more archaeological evidence o f circular fonts constructed in what is now Algeria than in what is now Tunisia. There have been various symbolic interpretations of the circle in Christianity 1 , but none of these explanations is as straightforward as, for example, the deathresurrection symbolism of the cruciform shape. Circular fonts may simply have derived from circular basins in Roman baths.

Lateran Baptistery, Rome, Italy

T h e baptistery at the Basilica o f St. J o h n Lateran, the cathedral of Rome, has a very complex history. 2 From the first century, the site held a house which was then made into a domestic bathing facility. Eventually a circular room was constructed with a circular pool in the centre. In the early fourth century the Emperor Constantine gave the property to the bishop o f Rome, who adapted the circular room into the first baptistery in the city. T h e form o f the baptistery and its earliest circular font/pool is very similar to that o f the round frigidaria (cold baths) o f the Stabian and Forum Baths in nearby Pompeii. The extraordinarily large interior o f the earliest baptistery was nearly 19 metres in diameter and about 18 metres high. T h e circular baptismal pool was 8.50 metres in diameter, and was sunken about I metre into the floor. It probably contained three steps. Based on Roman bathing practice, it is likely to have been filled with water to the second step. Literary evidence (for which there is, unfortunately, neither archaeological proof nor rebuttal) indicates that the pool was covered with silver, and that water was supplied through seven silver stags (said to weigh about 36 kilograms each) and a

1

Including J. G . Davies' interpretation of r o u n d fonts as reflecting the w o m b o f rebirth;

(1962), pp.21-22. krautheimer, in contrast, citcs ancient authors' interpretation of the

circle as a s y m b o l o f virtue (Augustine), and of t h e Church ( C a n d i d u s ) ;

p. 121.

2

(1969).

I h e a u t h o r is i n d e b t e d t o J o s e p h N. Fête tor his detailed and w e l l - d o c u m e n t e d s u m m a r y in T h e Cultural B a c k g r o u n d o f the R o m a n Ritual of Baptism' ( u n p u b l i s h e d thesis, Yale University Divinity S c h o o l . 1981).

Early Christian

Fonts

19

gold lamb (about 13 kilograms) which were on the rim. T h e water source was a nearby aqueduct, and the water may have been heated before pouring into the font. Later in the fourth century the baptistery was reconstructed as an octagon, but the font remained circular. Under Sixtus III (432-440), eight pillars with an architrave were installed around the font, creating an ambulatory. 1 T h e architrave carried an inscription reflecting baptism as birth and bath: 'The city, a people to be consecrated, here springs into being from fruitful seed: which the Spirit brings forth from impregnated waters. Be dipped in the sacred stream, O sinner called to purity: whom the water will receive old, but bring forth new. There is no distinction among those born again, whom one font, one Spirit, one faith make one. From her virginal w o m b M o t h e r Church gives birth in the stream to her children, whom she conceives through the breath o f God. Wouldst thou be pure, cleanse thyself in this bath, whether thou art oppressed by original sin or by thine own guilt. This is the fountain o f life, which purges the wnole world, taking its course from the wound o f Christ. H o p e for the Kingdom o f Heaven, ye who are reborn in this font; the blessed life does not accept those who are bom only once. Let not the number or the kind o f his sins frighten anyone; born o f this stream he will be holy.' 2

Font I, Orthodox Baptistery, Ravenna, Italy

Dating to the first half o f the fifth century, this octagonal baptistery (which some believe to have been constructed over a Roman bath) is one o f the most famous extant edifices from the early Christian world, even though the font which is now visible dates only to about the twelfth century. It is also known as the Neonian baptistery, after Bishop Neon (451-475), under whom the decoration was installed. T h e baptistery and its vast mosaic decoration have received much attention by art historians. 3 T h e dome was built about fifty years after the baptistery itself; earlier, it probably had a wooden roof. 4 The mosaic in the dome shows the twelve apostles radiating from a scene of the baptism o f Christ; the latter was heavilv restored in both the fourteenth and nineteenth centuries, and the mode o f the baptism may have been altered. T h e original floor o f the baptistery was three metres below the present floor. T h e earliest font was internally circular 5 , and it measured about 2.7 metres in 1

Kor a d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h e S i s t i n e r e n o v a t i o n , see K r a u t h e i m e r ( 1 9 8 0 ) , p p . 4 9 - 5 0 .

2

T r a n s l a t i o n in U n d e r w o o d , p . 5 5 ; s e c also his a n a l y s i s o f t h e i n s c r i p t i o n , p p . 5 5 - 6 1 . I n c l u d i n g K o s t o f , Van Dael, a n d W h a r t o n .

5 4 s

S e e K o s t o f , p,41; a n d K r a u t h e i m e r ( 1 9 8 6 ) , p. 176. K o s t o f , p p . 3 6 a n d 140; see also K h a t c h a t r i a n ( 1 9 6 2 ) . fig. 3 3 9 .

20

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

diameter. 1 .t has been said that this torn was built over a b i s h o p ' s t o m b 2 T h e medieval octagonal f o n t which is n o w visible was built on t h e f o u n d a t i o n s of t h e original circular f o n t

Mustis, Tunisia (Illustration 1) N o r t h - e a s t of t h e present-day t o w n of El Krib, t h e M u s t i s ruins include a Byzantine basilica and baptistery. T h e essentially quadrilateral baptistery is on t h e west side of the apse and c o n t a i n s a well-preserved circular f o n t p r o b a b l y f r o m t h e sixth century. T h e i n - g r o u n d circular f o n t is a p p r o x i m a t e l y 1 m e t r e d e e p a n d c o n t a i n s t w o steps. T h e drain is intact. Partway u p t h e apse wall, a very s h o r t distance f r o m t h e font, is a large circular s t o n e cistern, whicn m a y s o m e h o w have s u p p l i e d w a t e r to t h e font.

Illustration I — Mustis.

1 2

Wharton, p.363 Kostof, p 6 Early Christian

Fonts

21

Other Circular Fonts Stage 1 of font I, and stage 2 of font II, both in Aosta, Italy; and stage 2 of font I in Aquileia, Italy, were round; see below in the section on 'Fonts Transformed". OCTAGONAL FONTS

Dating to the early fourth century, the eight-sided form is one of the most ancient in the West for fonts as well as for baptisteries. Octagonal fonts were built frequently in Europe (especially in Italy and France), but they are not known in North Africa (nor in the East). Medieval numerology has given rise to much attention to the symbolism of the n u m b e r eight, but it received symbolic interpretation also in the early Christian period. 1 The predominant reference is to the Eighth Day, the day of Christ's Resurrection, the eschatological dawning of the new age whicn is entered in baptism. Thus, baptism is understood as resurrection with and new life in Christ (Romans 6.4b, 9-11; Colossians 3.1). San Stefano alle Fonti, Milan, Italy This earliest baptistery in Milan dates to the first third of the fourth century. Its font is the most ancient octagonal font discovered by archaeologists; thus it is effectively the prototype for the numerous octagonal fonts in the West. It may have been where Ambrose was baptized in A.D. 374.2 This baptistery was located to the north-east of (but was not attached to) the apse of the Basilica Vetus, also known as the church of Santa Maria Maggiore, over which the present Duomo (cathedral) was later constructed. The font excavation is located below the sacristy of the Duomo, but it is entered from the exterior. The font is an irregular octagon, measuring approximately 3.70 metres across, with sides between about 1.2S and 1.50 metres long. A water channel and drain are in place. A ledge on at least five of the interior sides of the font may have served as a step (on the other sides, destruction precludes knowing whether there was a ledge). San Giovanni alle Fonti, Milan, Italy (Illustration 2) C o m m o n l y known as the Ambrosian Baptistery, this octagonal baptistery with its octagonal font was probably constructed in A.D. 379-381 3, while Ambrose was bishop. 4 It was located to the south-east of (but was detached from) the apse of the Basilica Nova, also known as the cathedral of Santa léela. Most scholars believe this baptistery to be the site of Augustine's baptism by Ambrose at the Easter Vigil, 24 April 387.5 1

S e e K r a u t h e i m e r (1969), p p . 149-150: D o l g e r , p p . 1 5 3 - 1 8 7 ; a n d U n d e r w o o d , pp.80-89. A m b r o s e was elected bishop, baptized, o r d a i n e d a presbyter, and consecrated bishop w i t h i n a t w o - w e e k p e r i o d in late 374. 3 A c c o r d i n g to its excavator, M a r i o M i r a b e l l a Roberti, in a p e r s o n a l c o n v e r s a t i o n in M i l a n in 1985. K r a u t h e i m e r , h o w e v e r , b e l i e v e s t h a t t h e b a p t i s t e r y was m o r e p r o b a b l y built a b o u t A.D. 350, a n d o n l y d e c o r a t e d by A m b r o s e ; (1986), p.480. f o o t n o t e 18,' * H i s c o n s e c r a t i o n as b i s h o p of M i l a n was o n 7 D e c e m b e r 374. ' See M i r a b e l l a R o b e r t i a n d Paredi. 2

22

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

The fourth-century cathedral a n d baptistery were largely destroyed in the sixteenth century, although parts of the lower baptistery walls and m u c h of the structure of the font remain T h e excavation is entered by steps at the rear of the Duomo T h e baptistery was probably modelled after the octagonal imperial mausoleum of Maximian (built in the late third century), within the fortress of San Vittore al Corso in Milan. 1 it is similar to the m a u s o l e u m of Sant' Aquilino, attached to the imperial basilica of San Lorenzo. 2 T h e exterior of the baptistery is 19.30 metres in diameter, and is constructed of brick. T h e interior was a d o m e d central space with walls of alternating rectangular and semi-circular niches. 3 Eight large c o l u m n s stood at the perimeter of the room, between the niches. T h e p a v e m e n t of the baptistery was a geometric design in black and white marble 4 At least s o m e of the interior walls were painted, and there was a gold and polychromatic d o m e mosaic 5 but unfortunately the design can no longer be determined.

I l l u s t r a t i o n 2 — San G i o v a n n i , M i l a n . ' Sec M i r a b e l l a R o b e r t ) (1984); a n d M i r a b e l ! R o b e r t i a n d Paredi. S a n t ' A q u i l i n o itself w a s a l s o m o d e l l e d a l t e r t h e m a u s o l e u m o f M a x i m i a n . W h i l e t h e latt e r is n o l o n g e r e x t a n t , S a n t ' A q u i l i n o c a n be s e e n t o d a y a n d g i v e s a r e a s o n a b l e idea o f h o w the Ambrosian baptistery probably looked. 3 This b a p t i s t e r y is g e n e r a l l y a c c e p t e d as t h e first o c t a g o n a l n i c h e d b a p t i s t e r y , a n d it is b e l i e v e d to h a v e s e r v e d as t h e p r o t o t y p e f o r m a n y s i m i l a r b a p t i s t e r i e s in t h e fifth century, e s p e c i a l l y in w h a t a r e n o w n o r t h e r n Italy, P r o v e n c e , a n d Istria. 4 For d e t a i l e d p l a n , see M i r a b e l l a R o b e r t ! a n d P a r e d i , f o l l o w i n g p.22. 5 S o m e of t h e t e s s e r a e of v a r i o u s c o l o u r s a n d s h a p e s a r e o n d i s p l a y a d j a c e n t to t h e baptistery. 2

Early Christian louts

23

The baptistery was entered by a d o o r in one of the rectangular niches, and exited directly opposite. The in-ground octagonal font is more than 5 metres across, and the eight sides are each about 2.10 metres long. It was about .80 metres deep. 1 There were three steps on seven of the sides; no step existed on the eighth side, where the bishop stood to speak the baptismal formula. The font was completely faced in white Greek marble. T h e incoming water pipe and the drain, f o u n d in the excavation, are on two contiguous sides. T h e water was apparently supplied by a cistern. An eightdistich inscription 2 , perhaps from around the bottom of the dome, is f a m o u s for its emphasis on the octagonal shape of the baptistery and pool, and thus of the primary paschal meaning of baptism: 'This temple of eight niches was built for holy use; an octagonal font is worthy of this gift. It was fitting that on this n u m b e r the hall of holy baptism was built, by which true salvation has returned to the people in the light of Christ rising again. For he w h o was freed f r o m the prison of death frees the dead from their tombs, frees f r o m every stain of guilt those w h o confess their sins, and washes them in the stream of the purifying font. May they come quickly to this place. Let those w h o want to discard the faults of a shameful life here wash their hearts and bear pure breasts. Even though in darkness, may one dare to approach, for one will depart shining whiter than snow. T h e holy ones hasten to this place because no o n e just is able to shun the waters. In these Iwaters] is the reign and purpose of God, and the glory of [God's] justice. For w h a t is more divine than this, that in an instant the sin of a people falls away?' 3 T h e understanding of baptism as a combination of burial and resurrection with Christ, and as cleansing from sin and guilt, is reflected also in the baptismal homilies of Ambrose. 4 It is significant also that Ambrose spoke of the font as a grave 5 and a t o m b 6 ; perhaps he had in mind the imperial m a u s o l e u m after which the baptistery was modelled. 1 2

3

4

5 6

Mirabella Roberti and Paredi. p.19. I'he inscription is n o w preserved only in a ninth-century codex. T h e inscription is often attributed to Ambrose, but its a u t h o r s h i p is not really known. See Latin text and detailed t r e a t m e n t in Dolger. T h e a u t h o r is indebted to Edward Yarnold and Samuel Torvcnd for assistance with this translation. For examples, see De Sacramentis 1:12. 11.20 and 23. 111:2, De Mysteriis III: 11, 14:21.

De Sacramentis IF 19. De Sacramentn 111:1.

24

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modern

Ambrose baptized by triple immersion 1 but it is not known w h e t h e r he meant immersion (in which tne body is only partly in the water) or, rather, submersion (in which the entire body is u n d e r the water). Whatever m e t h o d he used, his interpretation was paschal, consonant with the practice of baptizing at the paschal vigil on Easter eve. While it is known that thepedilavium (post-baptismal footwashing) was practised in Milan 2 , no archaeological evidence has indicated where it took place.

Lyon, France T h e baptistery of St. Stephen, a rectangular building with a small apse, is outside the north wall of the present cathedral. It was heated by a hypocaust. 3 T h e octagonal in-ground font 4 , preserved and partially reconstructed, dates to the late fourth century and was in use through tne eighth. 5 In its original form, the exterior of the font measured 3.66 metres across. 6 Subsequently the interior of the f o n t was reduced in size, but it remained octagonal. It is less than a metre deep. T h e water channel and drain pipe were f o u n d in the excavation. T h e font was, at least in some of its stages, covered by a ciborium, supported by eight columns.

Font II, Geneva, Switzerland

In t h e fifth century the baptistery 7 in G e n e v a was doubled in size, its apse greatly enlarged, and a second font was constructed. This new font was to the west of the earlier font, and overlapping it on one side. 8 A column was placed at each corner of the new in-ground octagonal font, presumably to s u p p o r t an architrave and perhaps a ciborium. T h e font was originally 2.50 metres across. T h e water was fed through a w o o d pipe from a deep well some distance away, and drained out the bottom of the font. 9 In the sixth and seventh centuries the interior of the font was twice reduced in size—first to 1.80 metres across, and then to 1.20 metres across 1 0 —but the octagonal shape was retained (although in its smallest form it is nearly circular in appearance). T h e depth of the final stage is almost .50 metres; the depths of the earlier stages are not known. T h e first two forms of the font were revetted in white marble. However, the third form was faced with stucco which was not waterproof; therefore it is pres u m e d that immersion was no longer practised in Geneva by the late sixth century. 1 1 1

De Sacramentis 11:20 De Sacramentis 111:4-7. 3 Khatchatrian (1982), p. 115. 4 There may have heen a m o r e primitive font in I,von, but no traces remain. ! Reynaud (1986), p.101. 6 Reynaud (1986), p. 101; see plans and reconstruction, pp.100, 102-103. 7 See below, the section on 'Fonts Transformed", for information on font I and its baptistery. 8 See Bonnet (1986), site plan inside f r o n t cover, and pp.24-37. 9 T h e pine, drain, and well are extant and visible in the excavation u n d e r the old San Pierre cathedral. 10 Bonnet (1980), p. 183. II See Bonnet (1986), p.36; and (1980). p. 183. I

Early Christian Fonts

25

C a s t e l s e p r i o , Italy In t h e f i f t n c e n t u r y , a c h u r c h w a s c o n s t r u c t e d in this n o r t h - e a s t e r n Italian t o w n , with an o c t a g o n a l apsidal b a p t i s t e r y 1 a t t a c h e d to t h e n o r t h side of t h e a p s e of the c h u r c h . T h e baptistery is c o n n e c t e d to t h e n o r t h aisle of t h e c h u r c h via a s h o r t corridor. T h e small o c t a g o n a l i n - g r o u n d f o n t has sides of a b o u t .90 m e t r e s e a c h ; internally it is a b o u t 1 m e t r e across. It was less t h a n 1 m e t r e d e e p . J u s t w e s t of t h e f o n t is a u n i q u e circular vessel w h i c h has b e e n t h e s u b j e c t of m a n y theories. S o m e have i n t e r p r e t e d it as a s e c o n d f o n t , b u t it m a y s i m p l y have b e e n a cistern. Fr6jus, F r a n c e (Illustration 3) P r o b a b l y early in t h e fifth c e n t u r y , a baptistery w a s built h e r e with a plan w h i c h was s q u a r e on t h e exterior, a n d o c t a g o n a l o n t h e interior. T h e interior i n c l u d e d a l t e r n a t i n g s e m i c i r c u l a r a n d r e c t a n g u l a r n i c h e s (similar in plan on t h e interior, b u t n o t t h e exterior, to b a p t i s t e r y [I in M i l a n ) . T h e o c t a g o n a l f o n t is a b o u t 1.35 m e t r e s across a t t h e t o p a n d a b o u t .80 m e t r e s d e e p ; t h e circular b o t t o m level is a b o u t .90 m e t r e s in d i a m e t e r . It w a s r e v e t t e d w i t h m a r b l e , a n d c o n t a i n e d o n e step. A l o w p a r a p e t wall, in o c t a g o n a l s h a p e a n d p r e s e n t l y a b o u t .35 m e t r e s high, s u r r o u n d e d t n e f o n t o n s e v e n sides. O n t h e

Illustration 3 — Frqus. 1

See Mirabella Roberti (1982)

26

On Baptismal

Fonts. Ancient

and

Modern

eighth side the parapet opened, apparently to admit the candidates to the water. T h e angles of the parapet were buttressed with bases and columns which may have supported a ciborium. To the south of the font is a second hole (unique in France) in the baptistery pavement, in which there is a terra cotta bowl measuring 1.20 metres across at the top, .40 metres across at the bottom, and .38 metres deep. 1 T h o u g h hypothesized as a vessel for the pedilavium, its function is truly unknown. 2

Aix-en-Provence, France Located off the rear right aisle of the present Cathedral of St.- Saveur, this fifthcentury baptistery is square on the exterior, and effectively octagonal on the interior. Eight columns surrounding the font form an ambulatory. T h e octagonal font is a b o u t 1.60 metres across and .70 metres deep. N o steps remain. An apparent water channel and drain are visible.

Riez, France This relatively small baptistery is an octagonal space set within a square exterior. It contains f o u r semicircular niches, and there were doors on opposing sides (without niches). Probably dating from the fifth century, the exterior was later badly restored. 3 The font, now partially destroyed, was 1.25 metres across and .43 metres deep; a water channel was discovered. 4

Riva San Vitale, Switzerland

Dating to about the year A.D. 500 s , this baptistery is square on the exterior (at ground level) but octagonal with niches on the interior. T h e in-ground font is octagonal. In the medieval period, a circular aboveground font was built over the original pool; they are approximately the same diameter. 6 Presumably the first font was used for baptizing adults, and the second tor infants.

'Font III,' Geneva, Switzerland Approximately eight metres to the north-east of font II, another octagonal pool was constructed in the sixth or seventh century, although it appears that font 11 remained in use. T h e new pool was located in a new rectangular room ad|acent to the new. enlarged apse of the 'north cathedral'. This pool is 2 metres across; its depth is not known. It was built over a well, into which it apparently drained. T h e purpose of this pool is not known. It has sometimes been termed a font, although its excavator has hypothesized that it might have been used for prebaptismal bathing. 7 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

G o e t t e l m a n n , p.45. Février (1981), p.29. T h e b a p t i s t e r y is n o w u s e d as a d i s p l a y area f o r a r c h a e o l o g i c a l r e m a i n s . D a v i d - R o y , p.57. K r a u t h e i m c r (1986). p. 177. See p h o t o in B u h l e r (1986), tig. 7 B o n n e t (1980), p. 184.

Early Christian Fonts

27

Varese, Italy This northern kalian site is unique for having three fonts, all visible, built sequentially on top of each o t h e r d u r i n g a ten-century period, 1 T h e earliest font, which was octagonal, was built in the ground in the seventh century, and was probably used for adult immersion. Then, in the twelfth or thirteenth century, an above-ground octagonal font was built on the top of the earlier pool, and used for infant immersion or submersion. T h e exterior sides of this second font are decorated witii Romanesque sculpture. Finally, in the Baroque period, in the seventeenth or eighteenth century, a tiny covered single-pedestal font was placed inside the Romanesque font. Only affusion oraspersion would have been possible in this small Baroque font. This one site, therefore, provides a good visual summary of the decline from paleo-Christian baptismal pools to the Baroque minimalism of tiny m o n o p o d font!.. Cividale, Italy (Illustration 4) Now displayed in a room off the south aisle of the Duomo, this octagonal aboveground font was originally in an octagonal baptistery (destroyed in the seventeenth century). Constructed of marble in the eighth century, the font still gives the visual impression of a pool, even though it was not in the ground, ana it is

I l l u s t r a t i o n 4 — Cividale. 1

S e e p h o t o in C o l o m b o a n d G a r a n c i n i , p.7.

28

On Baptismal fonts: Ancient and

Modern

reported to have been used for the immersion (and perhaps submersion? 1 ) of adults in the eighth century. Eight slender columns are mounted on the rim o f the font, supporting a decorated arcade; at one time there was probably a canopy. The eight sides of the font measure about 1.25 metres each. Internally, the font is 1.30 metres across at the bottom, and about 2 metres across at the top. It is approximately 1.20 metres deep. There are two internal steps (or three, if the rim is counted). Originally there were three external steps on one of the sides, so that an adult could enter the water. Early Lombard Romanesque reliefs adorn the remaining seven external sides, as well as the arches over the colonnade. Among the figures on the arches are peacocks drinking water and eating grapes, lambs, vines, fish, and deer. On one of the side panels of the font are symbols of the four evangelists. Other Octagonal Fonts Stage 2 of font I in Geneva, Switzerland; and stage 3 o f font I, and stage 1 o f font II in Aosta, Italy, were all octagonal. See below in the section on 'Fonts Transformed'. HEXAGONAL FONTS

The six-sided form for fonts began to appear in Europe in the fifth century and within the same century also in North Africa. I lexagonal fonts were especially popular in northern Italy and the adjacent Adriatic area, as well as in what is now Tunisia. The usual interpretation is that the number six is a symbolic reference to the sixth day of the week, Friday, the day on which Christ was crucified and died. Thus, hexagonal fonts would seem to refer to baptism as being united with Christ in his death (Romans 6.3, 5a, 6; Galatians 2.20a; Colossians 3.3). Another interpretation was that the hexagon symbolized the Old Adam, created on the sixth day.2 Font II, Aquileia, Italy The very important paleo-Christian site 3 in this north-eastern Italian town is extremely complex. The baptistery located to the west o f the present church is undergoing further excavation at the time o f writing, and conclusions on the three fonts which are 'stacked' on top of each other in the baptistery must await ublication of this further work by archaeologists. However, it appears that the aptistery, probably from the fifth century, is an octagon (with four semi-circular niches) on the interior, in an exterior which is square at the lower level and octagonal at the upper. The fonts were hexagonal. (Regarding the hexagonaloctagonal symbolism, see below, on nearby Grado.) 1 1 3

See Rogers, p.347. Krautheimer (1969), p. 148, footnote 164. See Mirabella Robert! (1978).

Early Christian Fonts

29

Grado, Italy T h e o c t a g o n a l b a p t i s t e r y 1 w h i c h p r e s e n t l y s t a n d s d e t a c h e d f r o m t h e n o r t h side o f t h e a p s e o f t h e D u o m o (S. E u p h e m i a ) was c o n s t r u c t e d in t h e sixth c e n t u r y , p r o b a b l y o v e r t h e ruins o f an e a r l i e r s q u a r e b a p t i s t e r y . The p r e s e n t s t r u c t u r e , w h i c h is w e l l - p r e s e r v e d , has a p r o j e c t i n g a p s e o n o n e side, o p p o s i t e t h e entrance. The o r i g i n a l p a v e m e n t a n d f o n t w e r e b e l o w t h e p r e s e n t f l o o r , as is a l s o t h e c a s e a t R a v e n n a . The original i n - g r o u n d f o n t , like t h e p r e s e n t m e d i e v a l a b o v e ground replacement, was hexagonal. M u c h a t t e n t i o n has b e e n g i v e n t o t h e c o m b i n a t i o n o f h e x a g o n a l f o n t s in o c t a g o n a l b a p t i s t e r i e s , s u c h as in A q u i l e i a (II), G r a d o , a n d L o m e l l o . 2 U s u a l l y t h e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f t h e h e x a g o n a l - o c t a g o n a l c o m b i n a t i o n is p a s c h a l . 3

Cimiez, France N o w a s e c t i o n o f N i c e , C i m i e z is an a n c i e n t G r e c o - R o m a n site ( C e m e n e l u m ) w h i c h i n c l u d e d t h r e e bath c o m p l e x e s . T h e W e s t e r n b a t h w a s d e s t r o y e d in t h e late f o u r t h c e n t u r y , a n d in t h e fifth c e n t u r y a c a t h e d r a l a n d b a p t i s t e r y w e r e built w i t h i n its r e m a i n s . T h e n e a r l y r e c t a n g u l a r b a p t i s t e r y w a s built o v e r t h e f u r n a c e s , a d j a c e n t t o t h e n o r t h s i d e o f t h e c a t h e d r a l nave. E i g h t c o l u m n s f o r m e d an a m b u l a t o r y in t h e baptistery, a n d t h e f o n t i t s e l f was s u r r o u n d e d by six m o r e columns which supported a ciborium.4 T h e i n - g r o u n d f o n t is h e x a g o n a l at t h e t o p level, a n d r e c t a n g u l a r w i t h i n t h e l o w e r level. T h e h e x a g o n is a b o u t 1 . 6 0 m e t r e s a c r o s s a n d a b o u t .85 m e t r e s d e e p . T h e r e are t w o steps w i t h i n t h e h e x a g o n a l level, a n d t w o m o r e d o w n i n t o t h e rect a n g u l a r level. A c h a n n e l l e a d i n g i n t o t h e t o p o f t h e f o n t may h a v e p r o v i d e d w a t e r , b u t n o drain has b e e n f o u n d .

San Marcello, Rome, Italy This f o n t , w h i c h c a n n o w b e v i e w e d t h r o u g h a plexiglass d o m e f r o m t h e l o b b y o f t h e B a n c o di R o m a w h i c h is a d j a c e n t t o S a n M a r c e l l o C h u r c h , is f r o m t h e fifth c e n t u r y . It is an irregular h e x a g o n , w i t h six s m a l l l o b e s r a d i a t i n g o u t w a r d . I t h a s t w o s t e p s o n t h r e e a d j a c e n t sides. R e v e t t e d in w h i t e m a r b l e , t h e i n t e r i o r o f t h e f o n t is 2 . 5 0 m e t r e s across.

1 See Zovatto (1947-1948) and (1971). T h e same combination existed in Iabarka, Iunisia, and in Porec (Parenzo), on the Istrian peninsula of the former Yugoslavia. 3 For example, Davies wrote 'As he entered the octagonal building, the catechumen was buoyed with hope in the Resurrection of Christ, as he entered the hexagonal font, he knew he was to die with Christ, but as he left the font and stood once more in the eight-sided room he also knew that he was to walk in newness of life' (1962), p.21. While this interpretation is certainly logical, it is not known if this (or any, for that matter) symbolism was intentional on the part of those who designed fonts and baptisteries—or whether it was in the minds o f catechumens and neophytes, or o f those who presided. 4 Benoît, pp.146-7.

2

30

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

C o l o u r Plate 1 — Kélibia.

C o l o u r Plate 4 — Redeemer, C h i m a c u m , WA.

Dermech I, Carthage, Tunisia (Illustration 5) The nearly square peristyle baptistery of this basilical complex 1 is attached to the far wall of the north aisle of the church, and there were two or three doors between the church and the baptistery. The baptistery dates to the fifth or sixth century 2 The peristyle of the baptistery, formed by twelve columns, created an ambulatory Four additional columns probably supported a ciborium over the font The baptistery's pavement was mosaic: large panels intricately decorated with geometric shapes (including many octagons), flowers, and birds.'

Illustration 5 — Dermech I, ( .arthage.

1

2

3

I he church c o m p l e x known as Dermech I is quite close to the ruins o f the huge A n t o n i n e Baths, which sit on the Mediterranean shore o f Carthage ( n o w a suburb ofTunis). T h e n a m e ' D e r m e c h ' is a corruption of thermae, the Latin word for 'baths.' T h e entire site (including baths, basilicas, and what probably were houses) is n o w a national archaeological park. A small longitudinal chapel (perhaps a consignatorium?) is attached to the east side o f the baptistery. Its date is unknown. Only a small portion o f the mosaic remains in situ, and it is badly worn. However, a small panel from the pavement was installed in the Bardo M u s e u m in Tunis, and, interestingly, it includes what appears to be a chalice iramed by an octagon.

Early Christian Fonts

i!

T h e font has always been described and depicted as a hexagon. It does, indeed, have a significant hexagonal form near the top. However, the hexagon is o n e level down from the baptistery pavement; at the level o f the pavement, what appears to be the orifice o f the font is an irregular circle. 1 T h e r e are two steps each on the north-east and south-east sides. 2 T h e font is a b o u t 1 metre deep. At the 'top' hexagonal level, it measures 1.S0 metres across; the b o t t o m o f the pool, which was circular, is .70 metres in diameter. T h e hexagonal sides average .80 metres long. T h e font was revetted in white marble, s o m e o f which is still intact. Water from the font drained below ground into a cistern which is about metres away; the head o f the cistern is at ground level in the north ambulatory o f the baptistery. Although the original excavator reported also a water source 3 , it has not been found in more recent exploration.

Damous el-Karita, Carthage, Tunisia

This site, located outside the old walls o f the city o f Carthage, includes one o f the largest churches (a nave plus eight aisles) o f ancient Tunisia. Unfortunately, confusing ancient overbuilding, as well as prior destructive excavation and, now, thick growth all make the site difficult to understand and to explore. Its date is uncertain, but perhaps fifth century. For such a huge church, the hexagonal font is relatively small. It measures approximately 2.50 metres across, with sides averaging .90 metres long. There are three steps on two non-parallel sides (as at D e r m e c h I). T h e f o n t is too filledin to determine its depth.

Lomello, Italy

Variously dated from the fifth to seventh centuries, this baptistery is octagonal with eight small niches (alternating rectangular and semicircular) radiating out. T h e hexagonal font has been altered at various times. O n the interior is a small semi-circular projection from which, according to Davies, the presbyter could stand to preside at baptisms. 4

Other Hexagonal Fonts

Stage 1 o f the font in the church o f Servus in Sbeitla, Tunisia, was hexagonal. See below, the section on 'Fonts Transformed'.

1

2

3 4

It is a puzzle as to why this shape has not appeared on any plans. Further archaeological work is required before conclusions about it can be drawn. It is. thus, not technically possible at present to determine the shape of the font; following tradition it is here classified as hexagonal. Why the steps were not placed on two opposite (that is. parallel) sides is also a mystery. especially since here that would have put them on an east-west axis. Gauckler, p.15; see also Vaultrin, p.112. Davies (1962), p.69.

12

On Baptismal

Fonts: Ancient

and

Modern

SQUARE FONTS

Relatively few square fonts have been f o u n d , especially in the West. In North Africa, there are ruins of several in what is n o * Algeria, but only two are presently known in Tunisia. In Europe, several have been found in the former Yugoslavia, and one each in Switzerland and Germany, but none in either France or Italy.

Font I, Uppenna, Tunisia The architectural site of U p p e n n a (also known as Henchir Fraga or Henchir Chigarnia) is north of the present-day town of Enfidaville, on Tunisia's east coast. T h e first church which stood on the site, built in the late fourth or early fifth century, included a rectangular baptistery with a square in-ground font 1 approximately 1.40 metres across. It had rwo steps on each side and was over 1 metre deep. There appears to be a drain at the bottom of one side.

Maktar, Tunisia (Illustration 6) T h e basilica of Hildeguns (the name comes from a t o m b found at the entrance to the church), one of several churches in this once-flourishing town, was probably a cathedral. 2 It was destroyed and rebuilt twice, and in its third form included a baptistery. It probably dates to the sixth century.

Illustration 6 — M a k t a r 1 2

See p h o t o s and plans in Duval (¡973), T o m e II, pp 88-94 Duval (1973), T o m e II, p.139.

Early Christian Fonts

33

The church is on an east-westaxis, and the baptistery is within the walls of the church, behind the apse. 1 T h e square baptistery, about 3.70 metres across, itself has a small apse at its east end. The font was built over a cistern. It was covered by a ciborium mounted on four columns. The font measures 1.80 x 1.80 metres and has a step on three of the sides: the fourth (eastern) side does not have a step. It yvas covered with mosaic (which seemed to imitate water), much of which is now gone. The bottom of the font is also destroyed, but the depth was 1.24 metres. 2 Other Square Fonts Stage 1 of the font in Zurzach, Switzerland, was square; see below in the section on 'Fonts Transformed". CRL Cl FORM FONTS

Cross-shaped fonts have an obvious and immediate visual reference to the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Romans 6.3-11). The meaning is bivalent: both death and victory over death, the sixth day and the eighth day combined. Cruciform fonts first appeared in the West in the fifth or sixth century. They were particularly popular in North Africa (as well as in the East). Thuburbo Majus, Tunisia (Illustration 1) In about the fifth century, the southern half of a large pagan temple from the second or third century was transformed into a Christian church. 3 Tne baptistery was placed in the cella (the room in which the statue of the divinity had been displayed) of the former temple. The cellaAiaptistery is nearly square, measuring approximately 6 metres per side. Two doors on the south side give access to/from a columned hall (narthex), and one door (in the baptistery's east wall) connects the baptistery with the north aisle of the small church. The mosaic pavement of the baptistery is no longer intact. The cruciform font, with a circle inscribed at the centre of the top level, measures about 2.60 metres (north-south) by 1.93 metres (east-west). The squared arms of the cross are about .50 metres wide, and each had three steps. 4 The depth of the font cannot be determined without re-excavation, but it was more than 1.10 metres. There is no indication of the water source or drain. 1

2 3

4

The a r r a n g e m e n t is thus similar to that of the church of Vital is in Sbeitla; see below under 'Fonts of other shapes' Duval (1973), Tome II, p.139. For comparative plans of the t e m p l e and church, see Lézine (1968). figure 6. F o r a large detailed plan of the church and baptistery, see Ben Abed-Ben Khader, et al., Thuburbo Majus, Vol. II, Fascicle 2 of Margaret A. Alexander and Mongi F.nnaifer, Corpus des Mosaïques de Tunisie (Tunis: Institut National d'Archéologie et d'Art, 1985), plan 11 ; p h o t o 188 in the same volume shows a fragment of the baptistery pavement mosaic. T h e b o t t o m steps on the northern and southern arms were concave.

M

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

It appears f r o m notches in the northern and southern arms that, at a later stage, s labs w e r e inserted across those arms, e f f e c t i v e l y making the f o n t into rt 1.93 x .75 metre rectangle. 1 T h e hypothesized slabs are not extant.

Illustration 7 — Thuburbo Majus. Bulla R e g i a , T u n i s i a T h e sixth-century f o n t in this double-apsed basilica 2 is in the first bay of the nave, |ust in front o f the west apse. The p a v e m e n t around the f o n t is opus, sectile T h e f o n t was surmounted by a cibonum, supported by f o u r columns. T h e cruciform font measures 2.16 x 2.76 metres, and it is quite deep: 1.45 metres. T h e squared arms o f the cross are about .61 metres w i d e . T h e r e are f o u r sets o f f o u r steps each. A t s o m e point the f o n t was m a d e smaller 3 by inserting marble slabs across t w o o f the arms o f the cross, so that only the resulting rectangle n e e d e d to be filled with water. A m o n g the hypothesized reasons are that there was a water shortage, or that it was d o n e to enable infant baptism m o r e easily. 1

2

3

Such slabs are still in place in the cruciform tout at Bulla Regia; see below. The Bulla font in its rectangular stage was slightly longer and deeper. For an extensive description and analysis of dual-apsed churches in Tunisia, see Duval, Les églises africaines à deux absides, two volumes. The books include many photographs and plans of fonts in the churches he covers, including a plan of the Bulla Regia churches and font (Tome li, page 42). See Duval (1973), Tome II, p.46. Early Christian

Fonts

35

'Carthagenna' Baptistery, Carthage, Tunisia

T h i s site 1 has a large double-apsed church and very large baptistery from the mid-sixth century. T h e baptistery measures about 14 metres per side. Its external plan is square, but it is effectively octagonal on t h e interior, with four radiating niches or alveoles which were probably covered by s e m i d o m e s . 2 T h e floors o f these niches each contained a very large multicolored mosaic scallop shell; the remains o f one can still be seen. An octagonal ciborium supported by eight pil lars s u r m o u n t e d the font. T h e cruciform font, n o w partially destroyed, measures about 2 . 9 0 metres across, with a centre section a b o u t 1.40 metres in diameter. T h e extant arms o f the cross average a b o u t .75 metres wide. The font was a b o u t 1 metre deep, and was revetted in white marble. (It was, thus, larger but shallower than the cruciform font at Bulla Regia.) T h e r e were two o p p o s i n g flights o f steps which, according to the excavator, permitted adults to descend f o r 'total immersion'. 3 T h e r e are cisterns below the baptistery, so it is likely that there was a drain from the font and probably also a water source for it.

El Kantara, Tunisia (Illustration 8)

T h e cruciform El Kantara 4 font is also from the sixth century. It was constructed o f re-used 5 slabs o f white marble. T h e arms o f the cross are rounded, unlike those at T h u b u r b o M a j u s , Bulla Regia, and Carthage. T h e width o f the arms is about .43 metres, and the interior o f the pool is about 2.20 metres each direction. T h e r e are two steps on each o f the four sides. At present the font is only about .50 metres deep.

Font I, Acholla, Tunisia

Another cruciform f o n t with rounded arms is at Acholla (known today as Bou Tria). Regrettably, it is now badly damaged, and two o f the arms o f the cross are c o m p l e t e l y destroyed. Based on what is remaining, the font appears to have been about 1.40 metres across. T h e r e were steps on two sides. T h e depth can no longer be determined. 6 T h e cross-shaped pool seems to have been set within a circular form. 7 1

2 3 4

5 6 7

It is familiarly referred to as the 'Michigan baptistery' because it was excavated by a University of Michigan team under the direction of John Humphrey, or the 'supermarché site' because it is adjacent to the supermarket in Carthage. However, it has been called 'Carthagenna' by Liliane Ennabli (who excavated the church) in her article 'La Basilique de Carthagenna'. The site has a fine small early-Christian museum which includes an exhibit of the method of tubular vaulting which was used in the baptistery. Humphrey, p.167. Humphrey, p.167. 'Total immersion' is the same mode as submersion. It is also known as the Meninx font, which is how it is labelled at the Bardo Museum in Tunis, where it is now displayed. It comes from the Tunisian island of Djerba. In Khatchatrian (1962), it is referred to as Henchir Bour Medes. See also DACL. Yome 11. Part 1, column 417. This re-utilization may account for the bizarre holes and channels in some of the slabs. When examined in 1992, it could be measured down only .43 metres from the rim. See figs. 2 and 3 in Duval (1980).

36

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

Illustration 8 — EI Kantara.

La Skhira, Tunisia This sixth-century rectangular baptistery is attached to a n o t h e r rectangular room behind the west apse of the church.' T h e baptistery p a v e m e n t was decorated with mosaic, part of which is intact. T h e small cruciform pool has r o u n d e d arms which are quite irregular in size. Overall, the pool measures a b o u t 1.60 metres x 1.90 metres, and it is set within an octagonal form. 2 T h e r e were two steps, and the depth of the font was 1 30 metres. 3 T h e font is n o w quite filled in, and there has been considerable d a m a g e to the octagonal form. N o water source or drain was f o u n d . T h e f o n t was surm o u n t e d by a cibonvm supported by four columns.

Other Cruciform Fonts Stage 2 of font I in Aosta, Italy, was cruciform. See below, the section on 'Fonts Transformed.'

1 2

3

S e e plan in D u v a l (1973), T o m e II, p . 2 ? 5 P h o t o g r a p h s o f t h e t h e n - n e w l y e x c a v a t e d f o n t ( w i t h its s t e p s ) w i t h i n t h e o c t a g o n a r e prov i d e d by F e n d r i , p l a t e s XVIII a n d XIX. t e n d r i , p.44.

Early Christian Fonts

37

QLADRILOBE

FONTS

This four-lobed shape developed out of the cruciform shape 1 , of which it is a variation. T h u s the meaning is the same, referring to the death and resurrection of Christ. It is also known as quatrefoil and, in French, as têtraconque. Quadrilobe fonts were c o m m o n in Tunisia as well as in Israel. Kélibia, Tunisia (Colour Plate i) This late sixth-century quadrilobe font 2 and its surrounding pavement, all covered in mosaic decoration, is the most stunning early-Christian discovery in Tunisia. Originally in a baptistery attached to the south of the apse of the church of Felix in Kélibia (ancient Clupea) on the Cap Bon peninsula of north-eastern Tunisia, it is now reinstalled in the Bardo M u s e u m in Tunis. 3 The font is set within a raised, irregular circle, in the middle of a square mosaic floor which is 3.10 metres across. The font itself is 2.10 metres across, and slightly more than 1 metre deep. Ledges within the four lobes served as steps; effectively, there were two steps on each side. No water source or drain was found. 4 In its quadrilobe shape, this font reflects the paschal meaning of Baptism, but its mosaic iconography suggests Baptism as proleptic entry into the abundant life of Paradise. On the bottom of the pool, and in six other places, are monogrammatic crosses flanked by alpha and omega, emblematic of Christ and eternal life. On the vertical walls, at mid-level, are fruit trees (apple, olive, fig, and palm) which seem to grow our of the water. On and above the four lobes are fish and dolphins. 5 In Christian iconography of this period and area, fish often represented tne baptized, born in the waters of the font. The dolphin was a frequent symbol of tne resurrected Christ. One is reminded of what Tertullian had said about baptism: 'We, being little fishes, as Jesus Christ is our great fish, begin our life in the water, and only while we abide in the water are we safe and sound.' 6 The interior corners of the lobes, at the top register, bear lighted candles, perhaps an iconographie reference to baptism as illumination or enlightenment 7 , or maybe symbolic of the Paschal candle. On the upper vertical surfaces 1 2 3 4 5

6

7

Davies (1962), p.22. See Courtois. See Yacoul) (1978). p p . 2 1 5 - 2 2 0 . C o u r t o i s , p. 106. O n t h e l e d g e o r s t e p o f t h e e a s t l o b e is a m o s a i c f i g u r e w h i c h h a s b e e n t h e s u b j e c t o f m u c h d e b a t e . A t f i r s t g l a n c e it l o o k s like a b e e , b u t s e v e r a l s c h o l a r s b e l i e v e it t o b e a. seiche, o r c u t t l e f i s h (a m o l l u s c ) , b e c a u s e it is i d e n t i c a l t o t h o s e s h o w n in m a n y m a r i n e m o s a i c s ot the s a m e area. Those s u p p o r t i n g t h e h o n e y - b e e t h e o r y p o i n t to t h e reference to the b e e in t h e Exultet o f t h e F a s t e r Vigil. F o r a s u m m a r y of t h e d e b a t e , s e e P a l a z z o . F o r a d d i t i o n a l d e s c r i p t i o n s a n d analysis of the mosaic, see the b i b l i o g r a p h y herein for c o m p l e t e citations f o r C o u r t o i s , C i n t a s a n d Duval. Février a n d Poinssot, F é v r i e r s later o p i n i o n ( R A C , 1984), a n d A l e x a n d e r (1 9 8 3 ) . De Baptismo 1; t r a n s l a t i o n in E r n e s t F v a n s (éd.). Tertullian's Homily on Baptism L o n d o n , 1964) pp.4-5. F p h e s i a n s 1.18; H e b r e w s 6 . 4 a n d 10.32; J u s t i n M a r t y r . First Apology 61.

38

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

(SPCK,

o f the f o u r lobes are m o s a i c d e p i c t i o n s o f a dove with an olive branch, N o a h ' s ark between t w o birds, a chalice, and a cross u n d e r a c a n o p y supported by two columns. T h e top o f the circular rim has an inscription regarding the d o n o r and in hono u r o f Cyprian, b i s h o p o f C a r t h a g e three centuries earlier. The f o u r corners o f t h e square p a v e m e n t m o s a i c around t h e font d e p i c t f o u r canthari o r vases o f water, probably a s y m b o l of the f o n t as t h e fountain o f life, o r perhaps s y m b o l i z i n g the f o u r rivers o f Paradise ( G e n e s i s 2.10). S e e m i n g to g r o w o u t o f the vases are grape vines, perhaps a reference to the eucharist as the c u l m i n a t i o n o f w h a t is begun in the waters o f the font.

Jbel Oust, Tunisia An entirely different type o f q u a d n l o b e f o n t was in J b e l Oust. It is essentially a rectangular pool to which, on each side, are attached steps which are r o u n d e d at the t o p level. It dates to the sixth century. T h e baptistery here was constructed in the eel la o f a pagan temple. 1 T h e baptistery o p e n e d o n t o the c o u r t o f the t e m p l e ; the church was built o f f the courtyard on an ad|acent side. Thus the baptistery and church were at a 9 0 - d e g r e e angle, and were not directly attached to each other. T h e f o n t sat directly o v e r a spring o f sulfurous water. ( T h e site was and still is a thermal establishment.) Overall the font m e a s u r e s a b o u t 2 . 1 0 metres by 1.65 metres; its rectangular pool is a p p r o x i m a t e l y .53 by .90 metres. There are three steps each o n two o p p o s i t e sides. T h e depth o f the pool is u n k n o w n , but it was at least .80 metres.

Other Quadrilobe Fonts Stage 2 o f t h e f o n t in the church o f Servus in Sbeitla, Tunisia, was q u a d r i l o b e . S e e below, the section on 'Fonts T r a n s f o r m e d . POLYLOBt

FONTS

This form o f f o n t is essentially circular, with a varying n u m b e r o f small projecting lobes o r alveoli. In Tunisia the n u m b e r of lobes is usually eight, but six and twelve are not u n k n o w n in N o r t h Africa. As a rule they are dated to the sixth century. Polylobe fonts are o n e o f the mysteries of early Christian architecture in North Africa. T h e y are probably unrelated to q u a d r i l o b e fonts, being m o r e likely to carry n u m b e r s y m b o l i s m . 2

Font II, Uppenna, Tunisia P r o b a b l y dating f r o m t h e late sixth century (thus built perhaps t w o centuries later than the lower, square f o n t on this site), this f o n t is circular at the centre, with eight irregular lobes, set within a square structure. 3 N o w q u i t e d a m a g e d as 1 2 J

S e e Duval, Eglise e t t e m p l e en A f r i q u e du N o r d ' , p p . 2 9 0 - 2 9 2 . Duval ( 1 9 8 0 ) , p . 3 4 2 ; see t h i s e n t i r e article f o r v a r i o u s e x p l a n a t i o n s o f p o l y l o b e f o n t s . For plans and p h o t o , see Duval ( 1 9 7 3 ) . Pome II, p p . 8 8 - 9 1

Early Christian Fonts

J9

well as overgrown, its depth is impossible to determine. Overall, the pool measures about 1.75 metres across; the interior circle is only .75 metres in diameter. A few white mosaic tesserae remain on one exterior surface. A drain is visible on the exterior o f its bottom north side. Font II, Acholla, Tunisia Also in poor condition, this in-ground eight-lobed font is set within an irregular circle. The pool measures about 2.10 metres across; the interior round section is 1.30 metres in diameter. The lobes themselves average about .34 metres wide and about the same length. Now completely filled in, its depth is impossible to measure. However, the lobes themselves were reported in 1980 to be an extraordinary .46 metres deep. 1 Hergla, Tunisia The square sixth-century baptistery is behind ruins of the apse of a church on a hill facing the sea, between Hammamet and Sousse. The eight-lobed font measures about 2.55 metres across. Several of the lobes are destroyed, but those that remain average about .60 metres across and .50 metres long. The depth of the font is now impossible to determine. OTHER-SHAPED FONTS

Jucundus, Sbeitla, Tunisia In Sbeitla (ancient Sufetula), Tunisia, are two fonts o f a shape which cannot be described simply. 2 The shape is apparently unique to Sbeitla. Essentially the fonts are rectangles, with bulging exterior sides, and steps on each end. Thus the form is elongated, enabling the neophyte to have a definite sense o f passage through the waters, as wellas, with the several steps on opposite ends, a clear experience of descent and ascent. The Chapel of Jucundus (named for a local bishop), which served as the baptistery 3 , was attached to the north of the Church of Bellator, which no doubt was the first cathedral o f Sbeitla. The church dates to the fourth century, the baptistery in its present excavated form probably to the fifth. The baptistery was rectangular and included a peristyle. The font, now quite damaged, was oriented roughly north-south, had three steps at each end, and appears to have been covered on the interior with white mosaic (some of which remains). Overall, its interior measures approximately

1 2

3

Duval (1980), p.331; see also figs. 4 and 5. Thus, Duval's description o f the J u c u n d u s font: 'Si on ne tient pas c o m p t e des escaliers elle est grosso modo cruciforme, mais dans la branche de la croix qui fait face à l'abside est inscrit un demi-cylindre verticale; tandis que la branche symétrique était coupée à 4 6 cm de hauteur par une banquette qui supportait un demi-cylindre m o n t a n t jusqu'au sommet.' (1971), Tome I, p. 120. See text, plans, and photos in Duval (1971), T o m e I, pp. 106-13 3, 296- 297, and plans III and IV at the end o f the volume; and Duval and Baratte, pp.44-48.

40

On Baptismal

Fonts: Ancient and

Modern

2.90 metres long. The rectangular bottom of the pool measures about 1.45 metres long and .95 metres wide (not including the concave alveoles). It is about 1 metre deep. At approximately mid-level on one side, there is a ledge (see below, about the Vitalis font ledge). At a later time, after the new Church of Vitalis was built (see below), a column was set in the font, to hold a reliquary for Jucundus, and as a base for an altar.1 Vitalis, Sbeitla, Tunisia (Colour Plate 2) The Church of Vitalis was constructed in the late fifth or early sixth century to the west of the earlier cathedral and baptistery. This new cathedral was approximately double the size of the earlier one. The baptisteiy, placed behind the apse, was rectangular with its own small apse.2 The new font was nearly the same shape as the earlier one (Jucundus), but oriented approximately east-west. It was richly decorated in mosaic. Four column bases were built into the rim, no doubt to support a ciborium. Along the north side (just as in the Jucundus font) is a ledge about .60 metres from the bottom; its purpose was apparently simply to take up bulk, reducing the quantity of water necessary in the font. Counting the rim as a top step, there are four steps on each end. The overall interior of the pool measures about 2.95 metres long and 1.10 metres wide. Its rectangular bottom is 1.25 metres long. The depth of the font is 1.16 metres. There is no evidence of the water source or drain. However, a small orifice is visible on the south wall of the font, about 8 centimetres from the bottom; its purpose is not known. Trie mosaic decoration of this font is extraordinary, even given its considerable restoration. The background colour is ecru. The top of the rim contains a dedicatory inscription on the north 'bulge', and a laurel garland around the remainder. Laurel garlands are traditionally understood as symbolic of eternity. In between the sections of garland are rose branches. On both interior sides there is a black Greek cross, perhaps an iconographic reference to baptism as crucifixion and resurrection with Christ. Below the cross on the north side arestylized rosebuds, the flower of Paradise. On the bottom surface of the pool is a monogrammatic cross. Chateauneuf-de-Grasse, France Approximately 1.5 kilometres south of this village is Notre-Dame du Brusc, wnere there are the remains of an irregular seven-sided in-ground font from the sixth or seventh century. 3 It is 1.00 metre across, and about .70 metres deep. There are steps extending out from two opposing sides.

1 2

5

See Duval (1971), T o m e I. pp. 117-119, and 123. See Duval (1971), T ò m e 1, pp.149, 2 7 8 - 2 9 7 , and plan V at the end o f the volume; and Duval and Baratte, pp.49-58. See Khatchatrian (1982), p.l 10.

Early Christian Fonts

41

FONTS

TRANSFORMED

It was noc uncommon in the ancient world for fonts to be 'remodelled' for a variety o f reasons. Sometimes it was done to make the font smaller for easier use with infants. Other times it would seem simply to change the shape.

Font !, Aquileia, Italy (Illustration 9) T h e sunken rectangular font which is now in the crypt o f the extant eleventhcentury church may originally have been a bathtub in the Roman house which stood on the site. 1 If so, this domestic bathtub would have served as the font in the dormís eccksiae (house church) which preceded the twin basilicas. W h e n , in the second decade o f the fourth century, the two parallel basilicas were constructed 2 , the original rectangular font was made round and was incorporated into a hexagonal parapet (low wall) located in a transverse structure connecting the two basilicas. A hypocaust may have heated the baptistery and adjacent areas. In form, although not in placement, this first font in Aquileia is similar to the font at Dura-Europos. 3 T h e rectangular Aquileia font is 1.73 metres long, .84 metres wide, and .94 metres deep (comparable to that at Dura-Europos); there is one step at each end.

Illustration 9 1

Kraelinp, p. 147; and C o r b e t t , p. 106 a n d fig. I

2

Krautheimer (19B6). p.43. Kraeling, p. 147.

3

Aquileia I.

4-2 On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

Font I, Aosta, Italy The first baptistery at the cathedral in this north-west Italian town was located at the rear of the nave. The baptistery was rectangular. The first font was originally built in the fourth or fifth century. Its shape can no longer be determined, because of several later transformations, but it was probably polygonal or round; its interior was at least 2.40 metres in diameter. 1 At a later point in the fifth century, it was made into the unique shape of a cross patee-, the four arms of the cross angled outward. 2 In this shape, it measured nearly 2 metres across, and had two steps. The bottom of the centre section was octagonal, approximately 1 metre across. In the sixth century the font was remodelled into an octagon with two steps on every side; the dimensions remained the same. It is in this form that the font appears today, currently measuring approximately .75 metres deep. Font I, Geneva, Switzerland While the earliest baptistery in this cathedral complex dated to the mid-fourth century, nothing is known of its font. In about A.D. 400, a second baptistery was constructed, adjacent to the first. It was nearly rectangular and had a small, shallow apse. The in-ground font was octagonal on the exterior, but rectangular on the interior. 3 It was revetted with marble. Kight columns surrounded the font, no doubt supporting a ciborium. Servus, Sbeitla, Tunisia The church of Servus 4 may have been the Donatist cathedral in Sbeitla. Its square baptistery, to the north side of the nave, was located in the cella of the temple which existed on the site. In its earliest, fifth-century, stage, the font 5 was an in-ground hexagon approximately 1.75 metres across. Projecting from two of the sides were sets of two steps each. Four columns surrounded the font, probably supporting a ciborium. In the sixth century, a small quadrilobe font was installed inside the earlier hexagonal font. The quadrilobe measures 1.19 metres across, and is .53 metres deep. Both stages of this font can be seen, although very poor restoration has made the original hexagon appear nearly round. Font II, Aosta, Italy In the fifth century a square baptistery 6 was constructed off the north side of the nave of the cathedral. Apparently the earlier baptistery remained in use as well. 1 2 3 4 5 6

Bonnet and Perinetti, p.24. See Bonnet (1989), pp.1418-1421. See Bonner (1986), p.25. fig. 3. See Duval and Baratte, pp.75-78, and Duval, 'Lglise et temple en Afrique du Nord' See plan in Duval (1988), p.9l. See Bonnet and Pennetti, pp.28-30. Early Christian Fonts

43

The font in its first stage was octagonal. In the sixth century it was made into a somewhat smaller circular font, about 1.25 metres across. T h e water source and drain have been discovered. Zurzach, Switzerland In the Kirchlibuck area, to the side of the ruins of a fifth-century church, are the remains of its font. Originally about 1.10 metres square, at some point the font was transformed into a rectangle measuring .90 metres by .50 metres, with a depth of .56 metres. 1 Unfortunately, the font is now completely covered by opaque plastic and cannot be seen. 2 CONCLUSION

The fourth, fifth and sixth centuries in southern Europe and in North Africa saw the construction of hundreds of fonts which in size, shape, and decoration gave witness to the many meanings of baptism. They were, literally, constructed theology. N o t only ao they provide significant evidence for church history, but, perhaps even more importantly, they give models for baptismal renewal in today's church. Both patristic texts and early Christian fonts can be used today to help restore baptism to its central place in Christian life and worship. Knowledge about these ancient fonts is thus crucial for pastors and catechists, liturgiologists and theologians, and church architects and liturgical designers.

1 2

Khatchatrian (1982). p. 121 ; and Buhler (1984), pp.14-15. See p h o t o in Buhler (1986), fig. 6; and Buhler (1984), p. 14.

44

On Baptismal FontsAncient

and Modern

4. Fonts for Today The water of the baptismal font is the water of primeval chaos, the mighty water of the Flood, the deadly water of the Red Sea, and the salvific water of the River Jordan. It is the pure water of divine cleansing, the deep water of death, and the nverof the water of life. By the grace of God, it is the water that drowns and, at the same time, the water that gives birth. An important task of liturgical renewal today is the provision of fonts which can help make these many meanings of baptism unambiguously evident. PRINCIPLES

Four principles serve as the basis for considering the design of fonts for the future: 1. A font serves two functions—the symbolic and the ritual. 2. While baptism is certainly multivalent, its chief meaning is paschal— sharing in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. J. Submersion is a fuller ritual enactment of baptism's meanings than any other mode. 4. Fonts are for the baptism of adults as well as infants. First, a font serves two functions—the symbolic and the ritual The ritual function of a font is the most obvious: it holds the water needed for baptism. It is a container for the earthly element of the primal sacrament, a vessel for a liturgical action. But a font is also a symbol of that sacrament, a visual reminder of the fact that we are baptized. It reminds the faithful ot their identity: sinners who in the waters of baptism are forgiven; children of God who are the body of Christ in the world; and 'little fish' who in the water are given life in Christ, the great Fish. 1 In baptism we are all 'water babies', just as in the euchanst we are blood brothers and sisters. In baptism we are one in the water, and one with and in Jesus Christ. We are all baptized into one body 2 , the one communion of saints. Baptism is the most important, the most radical, and the most consequential event in human life. The water of the font is not only where this event happens— it is also a visual reminder that it has happened. It is both the locus of sacramental action and the symbolic reminder of that action and its meanings. The font should enable the profound meanings of baptism to be enacted ritually. Likewise, its size, shape, location, and iconography should give the font symbolic intensity and evocative richness.

' The fish imagery is that of Tertulhan; see his De Baptismo I (and chapter 1 of this book). 2 Anglican theologian Paul Avis develops this as 'the baptismal paradigm' for ecclesiology and ecumenism in his book Christians in Communion (Liturgical Press, Collegeville, Minnesota, 1990).

Fonts for Today

45

Second, while baptism is certainly multivalent, its chief meaning is paschal—sharing in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. Baptism, of course, has m a n y layers of m e a n i n g , including washing, incorporation, initiation, e n l i g h t e n m e n t , birth, death, burial, a n d resurrection. Perhaps it is because w h e n we t h i n k of w a t e r in everyday life, we t h i n k m o s t o f t e n of bathing, that w e see washing as t h e m o s t o b v i o u s m e a n i n g of b a p t i s m . H o w e v e r , N e w T e s t a m e n t scholar C. F. D. M o u l e has written that: 'in fact Baptism is so m u c h m o r e drastic than this a n d so m u c h m o r e farreaching in its c o n s e q u e n c e s , that t h e N e w ' l e s t a m e n t only s e l d o m uses this m e t a p h o r . Baptism is essentially death a n d burial—not m e r e washing.'1 A n o t h e r N e w l e s t a m e n t scholar, Oscar C u l l m a n n , concurs; h e wrote t h a t ' T h e t e m p o r a l centre of all history, t h e d e a t h and resurrection of Christ, is also t h e centre of t h e history of Baptism.' 2 In t h e sixteenth century, M a r t i n L u t h e r had also e m p h a s i z e d t h e paschal m e a n i n g of baptism: 'It is . . . indeed correct to say that baptism is a washing away of sins, b u t t h e expression is t o o mild and w e a k to bring o u t t h e full significance of baptism, which is rather a s y m b o l of d e a t h a n d resurrection . . . T h e sinner does not so m u c h need to be w a s h e d as h e needs to die, in o r d e r to be wholly r e n e w e d and m a d e a n o t h e r creature, a n d to be c o n f o r m e d to t h e d e a t h a n d resurrection of Christ, with w h o m he dies and rises again t h r o u g h baptism . . . It is far m o r e forceful to say that baptism signifies that w e die in every way a n d rise to eternal life, t h a n to say t h a t it signifies merely t h a t w e are w a s h e d clean of sins.' 3

Third, submersion is a fuller ritual enactment of baptism's meanings than any other mode. 4 Prior to t h e p o s t - R e f o r m a t i o n period, aspersion (sprinkling) was n o t used except for clinical baptism. T h e experience of being sprinkled with a f e w d r o p s of w a t e r d o e s not c o m m u n i c a t e a n y of the layers of b a p t i s m ' s m e a n i n g s — n o t cleansing, n o t birth, certainly not d e a t h a n d burial. Is G o d ' s grace so m i n i m a l that Christians can be satisfied with sprinkling? Nearly t h e s a m e is true of a f f u s i o n (pouring). W h a t is its sign value? It c a n n o t express birth o r d e a t h , a n d it is impossible even to b a t h e with only three h a n d s f u l (or shellsful) of water. I m m e r s i o n , w h e t h e r by p o u r i n g water over t h e head of s o m e o n e w h o is standing or kneeling in water, or by partially lowering an infant i n t o t h e water, suggests baptism's m e a n i n g as bathing. H o w e v e r , i m m e r s i o n is n o t able t o c o m m u n i c a t e either the birth or paschal m e a n i n g s of water. 1

Worship in the New Testament, Part ii (Grove Liturgical Study 12-13, Grove Books, Bramcote, Notts., 1978), p.52. 2 Baptism in the New Testament (SCM Press, London, 1960), Westminster Press edition, p.22. 3 The Babylonian Captivity of the Church, in Abdel Ross Wentz, (ed.), Luther's Works, Volume 36 (Fortress Press, Philadelphia, 1959), p.68. 4 See chapter 1 regarding the various modes of baptism, and especially the difference between immersion and submersion. 46

On Baptismal

Fonts: Ancient

and

Modern

O n l y s u b m e r s i o n — i n which the entire body is c o m p l e t e l y u n d e r the w a t e r — has the sign value o f drowning, o f death, o f burial a n a resurrection with Christ. T h e point is not h o w much water is necessary for baptism to be efficacious, but rather h o w much water it takes for both neophytes and congregations to realize the radical nature o f baptism. Certainly the o m n i p o t e n t G o d can effect salvation when only a few drops o f water are used. However, if the Church is to recover the full and profound significance o f baptism, then baptism m u s t be d o n e in a way that is consistent with its meaning: submersion in a b u n d a n t water. In his Large Catechism, Luther wrote that baptism 'consists o f being dipped into the water, which covers us completely, and being drawn o u t again. T h e s e two parts, being dipped u n d e r the water and emerging from it, indicate the power and effect o f baptism, which is simply the slaying o f the Old Adam and the resurrection o f t h e n e w man.' 1 Perhaps a congregation can only c o m p r e h e n d baptism as death and resurrection if tne font nolds e n o u g h water that an adult could drown. D o e s not the m e a n i n g o f baptism deserve and indeed d e m a n d that kind o f architectural and ritual radicality? T h e preference f o r submersion is not novel for Anglicans: ' T h e first m e t h o d o f baptizing which the C h u r c h o f England acknowledges (and this has always been the case) is submersion. It stands there in the rubric [in the Alternative Service Book], and has been a c o n t i n u o u s witness from the days o f Anglo-Saxon baptisms in rivers to N o r m a n fonts which can still be seen today and are large enough to dip a baby, and from the days o f Cranmer's Prayer B o o k s which explicitly required submersion . . . right through to ASB 1980 which makes it the first choice still.' 2 In the current R o m a n C a t h o l i c adult baptismal rite, the rubrics prefer 'immersion,' which is defined as being ' o f the whole b o d y or o f the head only'. 3 T h u s the acts o f submersion and immersion are c o m b i n e d in the term immersion. The same m o d e is specified for children o f catechetical age.

Fourth, fonts are for the baptism of adults as well as infants. While, w i t h o u t a doubt, the majority o f baptisms in liturgical churches are o f infants, adult baptisms are occurring in growing numbers. But will adult baptism ever be taken seriously by the Church, o r by the adult candidates, until o n c e again fonts are provided which enable adult submersion? It is a ritual and symbolic contradiction o f the m e a n i n g o f baptism to require an adult to bend over a font which looks like a birdbath.

1

2

3

Section 4; in Theodore G. Tappen (trans, and ed.), The Book of Concord: The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church (Fortress Press, Philadelphia, 1959), pp.444-445. Colin Buchanan, in Buchanan, Trevor Lloyd, and Harold Miller (eds.), Anglican Worship Today (Collins, London, 1980), pp.169-170. Regarding Anglican fonts (in England and Wales) designed for adult immersion and submersion, see Brandwood. International Commission on English in the Liturgy, and U.S. Bishops' Committee on the Liturgy, Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, p. 142.

Fonts for Today

47

Certainly infant baptisms wilt continue, but that should not control people's understanding of the m e a n i n g of the sacrament. If the baptismal paradigm shifts from its birth orientation to the paschal, baptism can be liberated f r o m its bondage to the trivial and m i n i m a l With fonts large enough and deep e n o u g h for adult submersion, the Church can be freed f r o m symbolic and ritual bankruptcy. Even if agiven parish does not currently practise submersion of adults, an ample font would make it possible in the future. T H E DESIGN' O F F O N T S

Size T h e pre-eminent symbol of baptism is living water, for which the font functions as container. T h e most i m p o r t a n t quality or the font is, therefore, the a m o u n t of water it holds. Ar the most minimal, a font should hold e n o u g h water for the immersion of infants; as a rule of t h u m b , that means a font 1 metre across, with water at least .50 metres deep. Ideally, however, a font should be large enough to a c c o m m o d a t e the submersion of adults as well as infants. Thus, a general guideline is 2.50 metres across, with water about 1 metre deep. The font at the new St. Benedict C h u r c h 1 (Illustration I) in Chicago is 7.30 metres in diameter; at its deepest, the water is a b o u t I metre deep. It holds nearly

' J a m e s J. Belli, a r c h i t e c t ; Regina K u e h n , liturgical d e s i g n c o n s u l t a n t .

48

On Baptismal Fonts. Ancient and

Modern

3 8,000 litres of water, and has seven broad steps. Located in an African-American parish, the font was designed to reflect the traditional African respect for the earth, and thus is round, to resemble a natural pool of water. 1 A large font/pool makes a visual statement about the meaning and importance of baptism. Large submersion pools communicate symbolic intensity; in holding enough water to drown or bathe in, they help people enlarge and deepen their understanding of baptism as burial with Christ and as salvific washing in the Triune Name. Adults and Infants It is a challenge to design fonts which enable both adult and infant baptism by immersion or submersion. Some modern fonts have two or more levels of water, usually a raised area for infants and a separate lower pool for adults. Bur these multi-level pools may tend to suggest that infant baptism is fundamentally different from adult baptism. That, in turn, may be an inadvertent contradiction of the fact that 'there is one Lord, one faith, one Baptism' (Ephesians 4.5). The cruciform font at St. Charles Borromeo Church 2 (Illustration 2) in London suggests a way to provide a pool which can serve for both infant and adult baptism. Built in the 1982 renovation of an old inner-city church, the sunken pool is

Illustration 2 — St. Charles Borromeo, L o n d o n . 1

2

For m o r e on this font, see Baldwin; and Kuehn, pp.45-50. Also see below, u n d e r 'Location Michael Anderson, architcct This font is modelled after o n e in Madrid, designed by Ktko Arguello.

Fonts for Today

49

c r u c i f o r m , 3.65 m e t r e s across, s e t w i t h i n a n o c t a g o n a l rim. T h e a d u l t c a n d i d a t e d e s c e n d s i n t o t h e w a t e r s of d e a t h w i t h C h r i s t a n d t h e n rises i n t o n e w life. (Illustration 3) By g o i n g d o w n t h e s t e p s o n o n e s i d e a n d c o m i n g u p o n t h e o p p o s i t e side, t h e r e is t h e e x p e r i e n c e of b a p t i s m as a p a s s a g e f r o m o n e life i n t o a n o t h e r , s i m i l a r to t h e Israelites' p a s s a g e t h r o u g h t h e R e d Sea f r o m slavery i n t o f r e e d o m . T h i s f o n t e n a b l e s l i n e a r as well as vertical m o v e m e n t : d e s c e n t , s u b m e r s i o n , p a s s a g e , a n d a s c e n t . T h e s q u a r e c r o s s i n g a r e a a t its c e n t r e c a n b e i s o l a t e d b y p l a t e glass p a n e l s , s o t h a t o n l y t h e c e n t r e n e e d s t o b e filled w i t h w a t e r f o r i n f a n t b a p t i s m , t h u s p r e c l u d i n g t h e n e c e s s i t y of t h e p r i e s t also b e i n g in t h e w a t e r . 1

•MII

.¡I-

MRH

Illustration 3 — St. Charles Borromeo, London.

Shape T h e s h a p e of a f o n t is i m p o r t a n t s y m b o l i c a l l y a n d p e d a g o g i c a l l v . M a n y f o n t s w h i c h a r e of n o n - s y m b o l i c s h a p e s l o o k m o r e like t h e y b e l o n g in s h o p p i n g m a l l s o r s p a s o r g a r d e n s , t h a n in c h u r c h e s ; t h e y a r e i n c a p a b l e o f e v o k i n g b a p t i s m a l 1

For more on this font, see Nugent. Also, see below, u n d e r 'Covers.'

50

On Baptismal

Fonts: Ancient

and

Modern

imagery. Indeed, they are more likely to evoke t h o u g h t s of luxury and consumerism, thus contradicting the counter-cultural nature of Christianity ('Do not be c o n f o r m e d to this world . . .' Romans 12.2). Based on the paschal paradigm for baptism, cruciform fonts most immediately 'speak' the m e a n i n g of this sacrament. This seems particularly i m p o r t a n t in m o d e r n Western culture where the denial of death is pervasive, a n a in an age when the scandal of the cross is less appealing to m a n y people than cheap grace. In recent research on Anglican worship in inner-city England., it was f o u n d that 'some in the inner city felt that the Alternative Service Book was too tnumphalistic, with too m u c h use of resurrection imagery. W h a t they wanted .. . was s o m e t h i n g that reflected a little more realistically the pain of the cross.' 1 C ruciform fonts can speak clearly that baptism is the sacrament of the cross. O u t s t a n d i n g cruciform fonts, both built in the g r o u n d and set within octagonal rims, were built in renovauons of two inner-city churches in London: St Charles Borromeo (in 1982; see above), and Guardian Angel C h u r c h 2 (in 1988). (Colour plate 3) .Another in-ground cruciform font was built in 1986 in St. Francis of Assisi Church, Concord, California. 3 (Illustration 4) This pool is approximately 2

Illustration 4 — St. Francis of Assisi, C o n c o r d , CA. 1

2 3

Trevor Lloyd, ' I n n e r City I.ngland,' in David R. 5 loleton, ed., Liturgical Inadturation in the Anglican Communion ( A l c u i n / G R O W J o i n t Liturgical Study no. IS, G r o v e Books, Bramcote, Notts., 1990), p.43. Mottio Del Prete, architect. Frank Mighetto, architect.

Fonts for Today

51

metres across, with water a b o u t .75 metres deep. On opposite sides of the cross, there are three steps into and out of the water. T h e pool is faced with blue ceramic tile. 1 In 1993 a large above-ground cruciform font was constructed at the new Lutheran Churcn ot the Redeemer, C h i m a c u m , Washington. 2 ((Co/oz/r plate 4) H o l d i n g approximately 500 gallons of water, it is a b o u t 2 metres across and 1 metre deep, and has two steps on each of two opposite interior sides. Two sets of oak steps are placed on the exterior of the font when there are baptisms, one set for entrance into the pool, and the other on the opposite side for exit. T h e water is heated and re-circulated. T h e font is constructed of poured concrete and faced with native stone on the exterior and waterproof plaster on the interior. A different type of cruciform font has been constructed in the reordering of the Anglican Cathedral in Portsmouth, England.3 (.Illustration 5) It is above-ground, with one interior step on each side, and an interior d e p t h of .56 metres. T h e exterior of the font is nearly 1.70 metres long and 1.15 metres wide. It enables both infant and adult immersion w i t h o u t the presider being in the water. A valve in the drain (at the bottom centre) permits both filling and draining. Octagonal fonts also symbolize the paschal (death and resurrection) m e a n i n g of baptism, although they take far more catelllustration 5 — Anglican Cathedral, Portsmouth.

1 2 3

chesis than t h e cross-

For m o r e o n this f o n t , see S t a u f f e r (1988), p p . 2 4 - 2 7 D e s i g n e d by Lou H e f n e r of t h e parish. M i c h a e l D r u r y , a r c h i t e c t ; D a v i d S t a n c l i f t e , liturgical c o n s u l t a n t .

52

On Baptismal Fonts. Ancient and

Modern

shape itself. It is ideal if octagonal fonts have steps on opposite sides, enabling the sense of passage through the waters, as well as descent and ascent. ,Vn above-ground octagonal pool was constructed in the 1986 renovation 1 of Saints Peter and Paul Catnedral in Indianapolis, Indiana. This font is a b o u t 1.70 metres across, with water approximately .50 metres deep. It m u s t be entered via a portable stile (set of steps). 2 T h e octagonal font at St. Monica C h u r c h 3 in Chicago is 2.40 metres across. It has interior steps on only one side (see pages 54-55 below).

Covers T h e cruciform font at St. Charles Borromeo Church (see above) can be covered with sections of brass-faced timber, so that a coffin can be set on it for a funeral. (.Illustration 6) Again, the paschal m e a n i n g of baptism is m a d e clear, and a visual connection is immediately m a d e between baptismal death and earthly death. T h e sections of the cover serve as an altar frontal at all times except when there is a funeral in the church. Thus, a visual connection is also m a d e between baptism and eucharist. (Whether this practice works well, however, d e p e n d s on the location of the font.)

I l l u s t r a t i o n 6 — St. C h a r l e s B o r r o m e o , L o n d o n . ' E d w a r d A. Sövik. a r c h i t e c t . S e e also b e l o w , u n d e r ' C o v e r s ' For m o r e o n this f o n t , see S t a u f f e r (1988), p p . 2 3 - 2 4 , J J o h n C. V o o s e n , a r c h i t e c t ; Regina K u c h n . liturgical d e s i g n c o n s u l t a n t . S e e also below, u n d e r 'Location.' 2

Fonts for Today

53

Fonts do not otherwise need covers and, in fact, should not be covered. When people come into the church, they should be able both to see and to touch the water. In some places, however, insurance regulations or municipal laws may make it necessary to prevent accidental drowning of children. In those situations it is necessary to design safeguarding devices which neither detract from the symbolism of the font nor make the water inaccessible. The octagonal font at the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in Indianapolis (see above) can be safeguarded with a brass wire 'fishnet', hooked into the interior of the pool about 2 centimetres below the surface of the water. It is easily removed when baptism is celebrated. Another approach to prevention of drowning was taken at Redeemer, Chimacum, Washington (see above): short table-like clear plexiglass inserts are placed below the water surface when there are no baptisms. They are virtually invisible and easily removable. Bubbles are prevented by the use of a debubbling solution made for hot tubs. LOCATION

The font is a part of the worship space, not a furnishing set in it. It is best to think of the font in architectonic terms, not as a piece of furniture. Likewise, the font should be located in its own defined space, just as the altar has its own defined space. It should be visible and accessible to the worshipping assembly. Finally, it is important that the space around the font be adequate both for people to gather around it for the sacramental celebration, as well as for other liturgical purposes. In addition, provision should be made near the font for placement of the oil (chrism) and the paschal candle. The location of the font makes a theological statement—preferably a statement of baptism as entrance into the community of believers. The most meaningful (and a very practical) location is just inside the main entrance to the nave. The baptistery at St. Monica Church (see above) in Chicago is located perfectly. (Illustration 7) The people enter the building into a spacious narthex or gathering area. The baptistery is between the narthex and the nave, with no barriers between these three spaces. Baptism is symbolized not only as entrance, but also as liminality, as threshold. The baptistery itself is octagonal, evocative of early Christian baptisteries such as that in Milan. Clerestory windows make it a light space in the daytime, and the stained glass wall splashes colour across the entire baptistery, including the water. The font must be passed in order to enter the nave, and the font is on axis with the altar, thus making a good visual and theological connection between baptism and eucharist. The baptistery is a well-defined space, yet it is functionally a part of the worship space. 54

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modern

Fonts for Today

55

Another excellent entrance location (Illustration 8) is at St. Benedict the African in Chicago (see above). After entering the church building, the people walk up a curving and sloping hallway, and then around the large baptismal pool, before going into the worship space. The baptistery, the pool, and the worship space are all round, and the pool is on axis with the altar. When there is a baptism, the congregation literally surrounds the font, providing a 'communal embrace' of the neophyte.

ICONOGRAPHY

Iconography is one means of calling attention to the font, as well as of visually proclaiming the meanings of baptism. The corners of the fonts at St. Charles Borromeo Church and Guardian Angel Church, both in London, contain symbols of the four evangelists in mosaic. The stained glass baptistery wall at St. Monica Church 1 , Chicago, depicts water and aquatic life, and the glass is low enough that children can lookdirectly at the water and fish imagery as they walk through the baptistery. Images of biblical 'water' narratives might also be put on a canopy over the font, as was done at St. Hugo of the Hills Church in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. 2 1 2

Robert Harmon, stained-glass artist. Robert E. Rambusch, designer.

56

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modern

It is better if decoration of fonts is limited to images, because they are multivalent and have evocative power. The use of words is discouraged because they are more cerebral than evocative. T E M P O R A R Y F O N T S FOR T H E E A S I E R V I G I L

In parishes where it is impossible to install a significant font which will accommodate adult submersion, temporary fonts can be constructed easily and inexpensively for use annually at the Easter Vigil. Another use of such temporary fonts is in parishes considering renovation or new construction, in which a font for immersion or submersion is proposed. It is important to determine in advance that the floor where the temporary font is to be located is solid enough to bear the water's weight. Perhaps the easiest way to provide a temporary font is to borrow an oblong watering tank for farm animals, although this requires thoughtful covering and decoration. It is relatively simple to construct a rectangular font of wood or concrete blocks which has the appearance of a coffin. Waterproofing can be provided by several swimming-pool liners. However, the paschal meaning of Baptism is clearer to neophytes and congregation alike if a cruciform font is built out of concrete blocks, and waterproofed with pool liners. 1 With any of these, consideration should be given to making the bottom of the pool slip-proof. In addition, the appearance deserves careful thought, so that it does not distract from the sacramental purpose. Temporary fonts can be filled with warm water using simple garden hoses, and can be drained by a siphon or with a small pump. It is important to be sure the sides and ends of the font are sturdy enough to withstand the heavy weight and pressure of the water. It is wise to wrap the sides of concrete-block or wooden fonts with two steel bands. PRACTICALITIES

Steps Steps within fonts are both utilitarian and symbolic. They enable entrance into and exit from the water, in a way which allows the candidate to descend into death and burial with Christ, and then ascend into new life in him. Often the number of steps has been interpreted with additional symbolism, but perhaps it is better simply to let them provide the experience of going down and coming up. Iwo sets of steps should be provided within opposite sides of fonts, thus enabling the neophyte actually to pass through the baptismal waters. (See

Illustration J) 1

For a description and photos ol one such temporary cruciform font, see Marchai and Conrad.

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If the font is above-ground, two portable sets of steps are placed at oppositeexterior sides of the font on days w h e n there are baptisms. (Illustration 9)

Illustration 9 — Redeemer, C h i m a c u m , WA.

For safety, non-slip surfaces should be used for steps. However, it is best, for symbolic and aesthetic reasons, to avoid handrails. If assistance is needed, let it be provided by a minister, sponsor, or a n o t h e r m e m b e r of the congregation, as an e n a c t m e n t of h u m a n s u p p o r t within the body of Christ.

Floor The floor s u r r o u n d i n g the font must be impervious to water; therefore, wood a n d / o r carpet surfaces are not advised. In addition, the surface should not be slippery. Water splashed on a polished marble or terrazzo floor, for example, renders it extremely hazardous for walking. Surfaces with s o m e texture are better than highly polished floors.

Changing Rooms W h e n adult immersion a n d / o r submersion is practised, nearby changing rooms are needed, perhaps for the presider as well as the neophytes. T h e entire floor between the font and the changing rooms, as well as within the changing rooms themselves, should be water-resistant and non-slippery. It is helpful to provide towels, mirrors, combs, and perhaps hairdryers. If properly located, restrooms can serve as changing rooms. 58

(>n Baptismal Fonts:• Ancient and

Modern

Piumbing Fonts large enough for adulr submersion require several types of plumbing equipment. First, a pumping system is needed to fill and drain the font. Both for good maintenance access, and for noise prevention, it is best if the p u m p and its controls are a distance from the font itself. Second, a decision must be made whether or not the font will have recirculating water. Some congregations and architects prefer to avoid the symbolism of re-circulating the water in which G o d ' s grace is bestowed. In other situations, water conservation is more important. Third, it is desirable for the water actually to move within the font (whether or not it is re-cycled). This can be accomplished by various means of aeration or by a small pump. Fourth is the need for heating the water to a comfortable level prior to the celebration of a baptism. Fifth, it is necessary to determine whether the water needs to be filtered, whether it needs to be purified, and how to keep the font clean from algae and other impurities. Depending on the water source, a wide variety of methods is possible. RITUAL MATTERS

ModeChapter 1 describes various modes of baptism in history, and the difference between submersion and immersion. Both submersion and immersion require a sense of grace and deliberateness on the part of the presiding minister. It is not inappropriate to suggest pastors and priests should practise these acts well in advance, until the mechanics of the movements artmastered, so that the movements can be graceful and unhurried when done within the actual sacramental setting. Perhaps this is particularly true for clergy inexperienced in handling infants. Submersion of adults can be done several ways, depending on the depth of the water in the font. If the font is deep enough, the presider may stand slightly to the rear of the candidate, place his/her arm across the candidate's upper back, and lower the candidate backwards completely under the water. (Illustration 10) if it is Illustration 10 — St. Charles Borromeo, London. easier, the candidate may be Fonts for Today

59

lowered frontwards, completely under the water. If the water is not deep enough for the candidate to stand, he o r she may kneel, and be lowered forward by the presider, until the candidate's head is c o m p l e t e l y under the water. I m m e r s i o n o f adults can also be done in a variety o f ways, with the candidate either standing or kneeling in the water. T h e presider may pour a generous amou nt o f water over the head (perhaps using a large ewer o r pitcher), or the presider may push the candidate's head forwards, partially into t h e water. In the West, infants are submersed horizontally; in the East, infant submersion is d o n e vertically. In either case, the infant is lowered completely under the water. S o m e parents will be more comfortable with immersion o f infants, rather than submersion. T h e presider may hold the infant, lowering both body and head partially into the water as the formula is spoken. Or, a parent or sponsor may hold the infant partially in the water, as the presider scoops water over the head while speaking the formula. W h e t h e r submersion or immersion, with adults o r infants, the action normally is repeated three times (once at the naming o f each person o f the Trinity in the baptismal formula), although this depends on the rite in use.

Clothing for Candidates and Presiders For either submersion or immersion, infants are baptized naked (although it might prove wise to use a lightweight cloth diaper or a rubber pant with a male infant). Adult candidates are modestly and practically clothed. Skirts should be avoided. Both men and w o m e n may wear washable slacks and simple shortsleeved shirts, preferably in dark colours (thus providing a contrast with the white post-baptismal garment). Obviously, candidates are to be barefoot. As tne neophytes leave the water, they may be dried with large, thick white towels, and then e n r o b e d in white garments (preferably m a d e o f relatively heavy fabric). In s o m e churches, the presentation o f the baptismal g a r m e n t is accompanied by a text a b o u t its meaning. 1 Thus, the white g a r m e n t has both practical and symbolic functions; its use can be traced to the early C h u r c h , and it has reference to Galatians 3.27 and Revelation 7.9. I f the design o f the font is such that the presiding minister also enters the water, his or her alb should be o f heavy washable fabric and should have weights sewn into the h e m . 1

The American Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) rubrics call for a representative of the congregation to say 'Put on this robe, for in Baptism you have been clothed in the righteousness of Christ, who calls you to his great feast.' (However, the presentation of the garment is too late in the rite to be practical if submersion or immersion has been used.) The Roman Catholic Rite ofChristian Initiation of Adults (1988) specifies that while the godparents place the garment on the newly baptized, the presider says 'You have become a new creation and have clothed yourselves in Christ. Receive this baptismal garment and bring it unstained to the judgment seat of our Lord Jesus Christ, so that you may have everlasting life.

60

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and Modern

A time needs to be provided after the baptisms for neophytes (and the preside^ if he/she has entered the water) to change into dry clothing. (See section on changing rooms, above.) During this time, the congregation may sing hymns. After changing, neophytes remain clothed in the white baptismal garments through the conclusion of the liturgy. CONCLUSION

The sacrament of holy baptism is a profound and radical act—profound because it draws us deeply into Christ and the paschal mystery, and radical because it grafts us onto the very roots of the Christian faith and into the body of Christ. Baptism is simultaneously a cosmic and an individual act—because it makes each of us a part of salvation history. It is a profoundly personal act with radical corporate consequences—because it makes each of us a child of God, while at the same time incorporating us into the whole c o m m u n i o n of saints of every time and every place. Baptism is a termination and a new beginning—because it is the death of our old selves, and the beginning of life in Christ and his Church. The waters which drown us are also the waters which give us new life. In passing through the waters of the font, we take u p the cross of Christ; but at tne same time, Christ gives us proleptic entrance into Paradise. Font designs based on such theology can result in fonts which are worthy of their holy purpose, and which will in themselves be instrumental in ongoing spiritual formation.

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Bibliography Alexander, Margaret, 'Design and M e a n i n g in the Early Christian Mosaics of Tunisia' in Apollo (1983), pp.8-13. , "The Symbolism of Christianity' in Archaeology (Winter 1950), pp.242247. Ariarajah, Wesley, 'The Water of Life' in Ecumenical Review, 34:3 (July 1982), pp.271-279. Babelon, E., et al., Atlas, archéologique de la Tunisie (Second edition, Paris, 1920). Baldwin, David, 'There Is a Sweet, Sweet Spirit in This Place' in Faith and Form, XXV (Fall 1991), pp.24-26. Baucheron, Fr. et R. Colardelle, 'Le baptistère et la topographie de Grenoble aux premiers temps chrétiens' in Bulletin (L'Association pour l'Antiquité tardive), 2 (Annuaire 1992), pp.32-36. Beasley-Murray, G. R., Baptism in the New Testament, (William B. E e r d m a n s Publishing Co., G r a n d Rapids, Michigan, 1962). Bedard, Walter M. The Symbolism of the Baptismal Font in Early Christian Thought (The Catholic University of America Press, Washington, D. C., 1951). Bejaoui, Fathi, 'Découvertes d'archéologie chrétienne en Tunisie' in Actes du Xle congrès international d'archéologie chrétienne, Vol. II (Lyon, Vienne, Grenoble, Genève et Aoste, 1986) (Pontificio Istituto di Archeologia Cristiana, Roma, 1989), pp.1927-1959. 'Documents d'archéologie et d epigraphie paléochrétiennes r é c e m m e n t découverts en Tunisie, dans la région de Jilma' in Comptes rendus des séances de l'Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres (1990), pp.256-277. , 'Nouvelles découvertes chrétiennes dans les régions de Thelepte et de Jilma et à propos d ' u n e coupe en bronze a décor biblique' in Bulletin de Travaux de l'Institut d'Archéologie et d'Art, Comptes Rendus (Avril-Juin 1988), pp.17-34. Benoît, Fernand, Cimiez: La ville antique (Ed. E. de Boccard, Paris, 1977). Bertelli, Carlo, et al., Milano, una capitale da Ambrogio ai Carolingi (Edizioni Electa, Milano, 1987). Beschaouch, Azedine, et al, Les ruines de Bulla Regia (École Française, Rome, 1977). Bethune, Ade, 'The Primacy of t h e Font' in Sacred Signs, 4.1 (Michaelmas 1980), pp.2-9. Bognetti, Gian Piero, Castelseprio, Artistic and Historical Guide (2nd. ed. Neri Pozza Editore, Vicenza, 1968). Bond, Francis, Fonts and Font Covers (Oxford University Press, London, 1908. Reprinted 1985, with n e w topographical index, by Waterstone & Co., London). 62

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71

Index Cruciform fonts 13, 14, 15. 34-38, 43, 50-53, 57

Acholla 36, 40

Cyprian 8, 9, 10, 39

Adam and Eve 18 Adult Baptism 10, 13, 27. 28, 2 9 . 4 5 , 48,

, 58-60 Cynl of Jerusalem 9

Affusion 9-10, 14, 28, 46

David and Goliath 18

Aix-en-Provence 27

Deer 19. 29

Alpha and omega 38

Descent and ascent 11, 13, 40, 50, 53, 57

Ambrose 7. 8, 9, 11. 22-25

Didache

Ambrosian Baptistery 22-25

Dipping 9, 10

Angels 19

Dolphin 7, 38

12

Aosta 17, 22, 29, 37, 43-44

Dove 39

Apostolic Tradition

Dura-Furopos 5, 13. 15. 18, 42

12

Aquileia 19. 22, 29, 30, 42

Caster Vigil 9. 22, 24, 57

Aspersion 9-10, 28, 46

Eighth Day 22. 34

Augustine 8, 9. 22

El kanrara 36

Baptism of Jesus 10, 19, 20

Eucharist 39

Bath imagery 6-8, 14, 15, 20, 24, 46. 49

Evangelists, four 29

Baths 6. 12, 15, 18, 19, 20, 30. 31, 42

Exultet 38

Bee 38

Fish 7. 29, 38. 45, 56

Birds 31, 39

France 13. 17, 22, 33

Birth imagery 6-10, 14, 19, 20, 46

Fréjus 26-27

Bloomfield Hills, MI 56

hrigiduñii

Brusc 41

Garment, white 60-61

19

Bulla Regia 35, 36

Gelasian Sacramentary 8

Candles 38

Geneva 17, 19, 25. 27. 29

Canopies 15, 16, 18, 29, 56

Grado 30

Cantharus 39

Grapes 29

Carthage 7, 8, 9. 10, 12, 31-32, 36, 39

1 ladrumetum 7

Castelseprio 26

1 leahng of the paralytic 18

Cella (of temple) 34, 39, 43

1 lergla 40

Chalice 31, 39

Hexagonal fonts 13. 14, 15, 29-32, 42, 43

Chateauneuf-de-Grasse 41

1 lypocausts 25, 42

Chicago 48-49, 54, 56

Iconography 45, 56-57

Chimacum, WA 52, 54

Immersion 9-11, 13, 14. 18. 24, 25, 28. 29, 46-48,

Chrysostom 9

52. 58-60

Cihma 15, 16, 25, 27, 30, 3 1. 34, 35, 36, 41. 43

Indianapolis 54

Cimiez 30

Infant Baptism 10. H, 14, 27, 28, 35. 46.

Circular fonts 14, 15. 17, 19-22, 27, 3 1, 43. 44. 56 Cisterns 21. 24, 26, 32. 34

48. 50, 60 Inscriptions 20, 24, 39 Irenaeus 7

Cividale 13, 28

Italy 13. 17, 22, 33

Concord, CA 51 -52

J bel Oust 39

Covers 16, 53-54

Justin Martyr 8. 12

Cranmer, I homas 47

Kélibia 7, 38

Cross 7, 19, 34-38, 39. 41. 51

Ea Skhira 37

72

On Baptismal Fonts: Ancient and

Modtrn

L a m b s 20. 29

Ravenna 20-21. 30

Lateran Baptistery IS, 19

Rectangular fonts 13. 14, 17-19. 42. 44, 57

Laurel garland 41

Riez 27

Lead fonts 14

Riva San Vitale 27

Leo the G r e a t 8, 9

Rivers of Paradise 9, 39

Loeation 54-56

R o m e 8, 11, 12, 13. 15. 18-20. 30

Lomello 30

Roses 41

L o n d o n 49-51, S3, 56

R o u n d fonts (see Circular fonts)

Luther, Martin 6, 10, 46-47

Safety 54, 58

Lyon 25

Sarcophagi 17-18

Maktar 3 3

Sbeitla 17, 32. 39, 40-41, 43

M a u s o l e a 15-16, 23. 24

S c u l p t u r e 28, 29

M e n i n x 36

Seiche 38

Milan 7, 8. 9, 1 1, 13, 15, 22-25. 26. 54

S h a p e 13-15. 17.passim, 50-54

Minimalism 14, 28, 48

Shell 36

M o d e 9-10, 59-60

Sixtus 111 20

Mosaics 7, 16, 20, 23, 3 1, 34. 36. 37, 38,

Size 48-49 Sprinkling (sec Aspersion)

39, 40, 41

S q u a r e fonts 14. 15, 33-34, 39, 44

Mustis 21 Nice 30

Stan, 18

N o a h ' s ark 39

Steps 11.19, 2 4 , 2 6 . 29. 30, 31.32, 34.36, 3 7 . 3 8 , 3 9 ,

Octagonal f o n t s 13, 14. 17. 21. 22-29, 43, Odes of Solomon

40, 41, 42, 43. 52, 57-58 S u b m e r s i o n 9-11, 1 1 4 , 24, 28. 29, 36, 45-48. 57,

44, 51, 54 9

Optatus 8

58, 59-60. 61 Switzerland 17. 33

Origen 8

l e m p l e s 34, 39, 43

Paradise 9, 18, 38. 39. 61

I e m p o r a r y fonts 57

Paschal candle 38, 54

lertullian 7. 8. 12, 38. 45

Paschal imagery 6-11. 14, 16, 18, 22, 24, 29.

T h e o d o r e of M o p s u e s t i a 9

34. 38, 42, 45-47. 49, 51, 53, 57 Passage 11, 40, 50, 57

T h u b u r b o M a | u s 34-35. 36 I b m b imagery 8-11, 14, 15-16, 24, 30. 34-38

Peacocks 29

Trees 9. 38

Pedilavmm

Tunisia H , 14. 17. 20. 21. 29. 34, 38, 39

25. 27

Peristyle 31. 40

L p p e n n a 3 3. 39-40

Polygonal fonts 14, 43

Varese 28

Polylobe fonts 39-40

Vines, g r a p e 29. 39

Pompeii 19

Water symbolism 6-11, 45-48, 56, 61

P o r t s m o u t h 52

W o m a n at t h e well 18

Pouring (see A f f u s i o n )

W o m b imagery 7-10. 14, 19, 20, 38

Quadrilobe fonts 1 3. 14. 15. 17. 38-39, 43

Zeno of Verona 8

Quodvultdeus 8

Zurzach 19, 34, 44

Index

73