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This baptismal group consists of a medallion showing the
Madonna and Child and the font below. It was installed and
dedicated in February, 1952. It is the gift of Dr. and Mrs.
Douglas Wright, Jr.
The medallion, Madonna and Child, came from Italy and is of
colored terra cotta. It dates from the 15th century, the
time of such famous sculptors as Donatello, Della Robia and
others. As it is unsigned it is impossible to name the
artist, but many beautiful terra cotta reliefs were done in
this period.
As for the font, the basin was found in Florence, Italy, in
1951 by Dr. and Mrs. Wright. It is of Carrara marble and the
carved symbolism definitely marks it as early Christian
Byzantine sculpture, 12th century or very likely earlier.
The peacock shown on the front was a very early symbol of
the resurrection. The phoenix
birds on either end were symbolic of immortality, while
the grapevine stands for eternal life and the grape for the
blood of Christ. It is probably safe to say that neither of
the first two symbols was used or is found in Christian
sculpture later than the Byzantine period.
The pedestal, also found in Florence, is of stone and of a
much later period, Gothic in fact. It is interesting to note
the difference in size and pitch of the spirals in the three
columns which comprise the vertical portion.
A silver bowl completes the group.
Mr. Nishan Toor, internationally known sculptor of Altadena,
designed and carved the wood cover. He also is responsible
for the design and execution of certain elements used to
bind the pedestal to the basin.
The whole makes a baptismal group of rare beauty and of
unusual historic and religious interest.
The Phoenix Symbol
The earliest link between the phoenix myth and the fact of
the resurrection appears in the Epistle of Clement of Rome
to the Corinthians (AD 96). The phoenix was alleged to have
been reborn out of its own nest where it had died. Clement
drew the obvious parallel: "Do we, then, consider it a great
and remarkable thing if the Creator of the universe will
bring about a resurrection of those who have piously served
Him in the assurance engendered by honest faith, when He
uses even a bird to illustrate the sublime nature of His
promise?" It is obvious that Clement accepted the story of
the phoenix and, following his letter, the symbolism became
quite popular.
It was not until the tenth or eleventh centuries that the
fable of the phoenix was discredited; the symbol of the
phoenix disappeared from Christian objects at that time.
This indicates that the baptismal font was produced prior to
that time.
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