Cult Stone - Baptismal font

Baptismal fonts from the middle ages
Our oldest fonts date back to the end of the 11th century where stone carving has probably been new to the stone-carvers.

The granite fonts and their material have their origin in Denmark and Danish master stone-carvers which is the original designation of the profession; “Carl Stenmester scar thenna Sten” is one of the signatures.

The term “scar” meaning “cut” may seem odd as the granite or limestone was not cut. It is therefore assumed that the master stone-carvers had inherited their skills from their forefathers’ century-old traditions cutting in wood.

The technique for e.g. carving fonts came from their work with runic stones where runic letters where either scratched or carved. The master stone-carvers have no doubt been a great capacity in the area; however, they have also been pioneers and brave men.

It took courage to start such extensive and new work projects for something as serene and important as the church at that time.

The motif of the Lihme baptismal font
The Helstrup font has been used as a model for this cult stone basin and base whilst the relief is derived from the baptismal font in Lihme church in Salling. The font is considered to date back to the 12th century.

The relief consists of five motifs that may possibly represent five different stories starting off with a man on a horse, St. Hubert and a dog chasing a deer.

Then follows two goats eating from the Tree of life, the Tree of Dreams – possibly to gain protection from evil.

A man with a pitchfork fights the master stone-carvers perception of a lion. A long and powerful animal with dragon and bird claws instead of paws and a loin tail which ends in a switch in the shape of a large acanthus leaf.

A man, possibly St. Jørgen, fights a dragon with wings and again a long tail that ends in a small acanthus leaf.

The relief is finished with two men in a house. The men are possibly Adam and his son, Seth, as an ancient legend goes that when Adam was dying he asked his son Seth to fetch a twig from the Tree of Life.

The motifs may also constitute a coherent story starting with the man of the house being presented with a sacred weapon and then going on to battle with it. The man on the relief is in any case a recurring figure.

The symbolic of both interpretations is, however, the same: mankind’s battle against evil.

The interpretations of the motifs are many; however, no one has been able to find the definitive answer so please feel free to make your own interpretation – you are only limited by your imagination.

Mackeprang: Danmarks middelalderlige døbefonte, 1941.
Leaflet published by Lihme Menighedsråd, 1991

Height: 63 cm
700 numbered copies


	Baptismal fonts from the middle ages Our oldest fonts date back to the end of the 11th century where stone carving has probably been new to the stone-carvers. The granite fonts and their material have their origin in Denmark and Danish master stone-carvers which is the original designation of the profession; “Carl Stenmester scar thenna Sten” is one of the signatures. The term “scar” meaning “cut” may seem odd as the granite or limestone was not cut. It is therefore assumed that the master stone-carvers had inherited their skills from their forefathers’ century-old traditions cutting in wood. The technique for e.g. carving fonts came from their work with runic stones where runic letters where either scratched or carved. The master stone-carvers have no doubt been a great capacity in the area; however, they have also been pioneers and brave men. It took courage to start such extensive and new work projects for something as serene and important as the church at that time. The motif of the Lihme baptismal font The Helstrup font has been used as a model for this cult stone basin and base whilst the relief is derived from the baptismal font in Lihme church in Salling. The font is considered to date back to the 12th century. The relief consists of five motifs that may possibly represent five different stories starting off with a man on a horse, St. Hubert and a dog chasing a deer. Then follows two goats eating from the Tree of life, the Tree of Dreams – possibly to gain protection from evil. A man with a pitchfork fights the master stone-carvers perception of a lion. A long and powerful animal with dragon and bird claws instead of paws and a loin tail which ends in a switch in the shape of a large acanthus leaf. A man, possibly St. Jørgen, fights a dragon with wings and again a long tail that ends in a small acanthus leaf. The relief is finished with two men in a house. The men are possibly Adam and his son, Seth, as an ancient legend goes that when Adam was dying he asked his son Seth to fetch a twig from the Tree of Life. The motifs may also constitute a coherent story starting with the man of the house being presented with a sacred weapon and then going on to battle with it. The man on the relief is in any case a recurring figure. The symbolic of both interpretations is, however, the same: mankind’s battle against evil. The interpretations of the motifs are many; however, no one has been able to find the definitive answer so please feel free to make your own interpretation – you are only limited by your imagination. Mackeprang: Danmarks middelalderlige døbefonte, 1941. Leaflet published by Lihme Menighedsråd, 1991 Height: 63 cm 700 numbered copies Back to the stones
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