Ruins and Romans, Fonts and Furrows. Anything Old in Lancashire

[Maggie.]

There must be some very interesting places not too far away from you, Sue .... such as Preston and Ribchester?

[youngtug]

This interesting lump of sandstone has been around our field/garden since we came here in 1979.  It was only a few years ago that I re-discovered it, looked at it closely and wondered if it was some sort of grindstone.  Another possibility that has been suggested is that it had been a wooden post support.  I probably have a better pic. but I must sign off for tonight.

It could be a metate.  http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/prehistoric/cupules.htm

                          http://youtu.be/TEnIcqRiDQA

[alpinecottage]

Could it be a stoup, the shallow dish that holy water used to be kept in at the doorway to a church?  The attached picture shows one from Ireby in Cumbria.

[Maggie.]

YT - again thanks for interesting info.  So a metate would be a quern stone and used for grinding? - never heard that name before.

[Maggie.]

Alpine - a stoup is a possibility isn't it?  Mine is round and very substanial - possibly bigger than the one in your photo, but one thing that goes against my stone being a font is its shallow hole.

[alpinecottage]

Here's one more similar to the "font in the field".  This one's from Penrhosllugwy, Anglesey.  Yours is too small to be a font - too shallow and too small in diameter - imagine holding a screaming baby over that and not pouring water on your shoes!



Apparently stoups were removed from some churches in 16th century because they were considered "superstitious".  One in Ludlow was found being used for a chicken water container in 1912 and reinstated in the church

Ooops picture's come out a bit big!

[Maggie.]

That looks like mine doesn't it?   The good thing is it gives a bit of credence to the possibility of a shrine or the early church that pre-dated the present day St Mary's in Newchurch.  There has always been a suggestion amongst older inhabitants of the village that the original site was in the bottom of the valley, not on the hillside where it now is.  The present position of the stoup/font is in that valley.

Wonderful to be learning all these things.

[alpinecottage]

Wonderful to be learning all these things.

Yep, I never knew that the holy water thingy was called a stoup until today

[youngtug]

 I would say it is around 18" diameter - the link to the old thread above takes you took another photo and there is a glove next to it, which gives a bit of scale.  Unbelievably none of us had a measure to hand as we came across it unintentionally.  Once the fields have dried out sufficiently I intend to re-visit it for a better look.

Are you sure it is only 18" diameter, it looks bigger to me. If it was only 18"dia, and of shallow depth I would expect it to be light enough to be carried by 2 men and even lifted by one. The other stone, from your garden is probably a metate, this one, the original of the thread, is I hope a font given that it seems to have been shaped into a circle externally.