Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist
The church contains one of the most important late medieval baptismal fonts of the Seven Sacraments theme.  Costume details suggest a date of about 1485.  The octagonal font is aligned with liturgical functions.  The westernmost face shows the Mass, directly aligned with the viewer’s perspective of the priest at the altar.  Reading clockwise the sacraments are penance, extreme unction, Christ’s baptism in the Jordan, baptism (facing the altar, and showing a font similar Badingham’s), matrimony, holy orders, and confirmation.  In the image of the mass, the priest elevates the host, an attendant rings the sacring bell, and two persons peek over the edge of the parclose.  The priest’s head, like the other broken elements of the sculpture, was probably deliberately defaced during the period of Puritan iconoclasm in the 17th century.

BA1 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, view from chancel towards west showing baptismal font.

BA2 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font with base, 1485.

BA3 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font, 1485. Reading clockwise from the west, the sacraments are mass, penance, extreme unction, Christ’s baptism in the Jordan, baptism (facing the altar), matrimony, holy orders, and confirmation

BA4 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font,  1485.  Mass: the priest elevates the host, an attendant rings the sacring bell, and two persons peek over the edge of the parclose.  The priest’s head, like the other broken elements of the sculpture, was probably deliberately defaced during the period of Puritan iconoclasm in the 17th century

BA5 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font, 1485.  Penance: administered to a kneeling woman surrounded by a crowd of people. [MPC]

BA6 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font, 1485.  Extreme Unction: Sick person in bed, family weeping.

BA7 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font, 1485. Baptism of Christ in the Jordan, John the Baptist to the left , angel holding Christ’s robe to the right.

BA8 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font, 1485.  Baptism:
image on the east side, facing the altar, and showing a font similar Badingham’s.  A crowd of people surround the font; one woman holds a cloth to receive the child.

BA9 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font, 1485.  Matrimony:
crowd surround couple, faces deface - one head show later recutting of features.

BA10 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font, 1485.  Matrimony:
detail, showing book being read and defaced heads - one head show later recutting of features.

BA11 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font, 1485.  Holy Orders:

BA12 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font, 1485.  Confimation:

BA13 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font, 1485. Base detail, Archangel Michael under image of the mass, seated bishop under penance

BA14 Badingham (Suffolk), Church of St. John the Baptist, baptismal font, 1485. Base detail, prophet under Confirmation and king David under Holy Orders.