Font

The history of Holy Trinity’s font is quirky!It is not original to the church, being much older than our stone building. It may be Saxon in origin (400 to 1066 CE) or Norman (1066 to 1348 CE). Certainly the carvings appear to be Norman in date.

 

The font came from the church of St Leonard, Over Whitacre in North Warwickshire. St Leonard’s was rebuilt in 1765 and further alterations were made c1850 when the Georgian cupola was replaced by a spire. It is thought that at this point the rather large font was removed to make way for the current smaller one (the church itself is not large). Richard Sadler of Holt Hall (whose earlier memorial of 1734 is in the current building) had descendants of the same name who moved to Sutton Coldfield in 1837. When the then Richard Sadler, at this point a resident of High Street in Sutton Coldfield (the legal practice at Sadler House which is still in use by the subsequent firm of Eddowes, Perry and Osbourne) discovered the font in the churchyard, he took it to his house where he set it in the garden. He was concerned that visitors on horseback to the neighbouring inn had started to use it as a mounting-block and felt it deserved to be better used!

 

This Richard died in 1856. At some point the family presented it to the church. A brass plaque on the font explains this history.

 

The marble basin which lines the font was from the font previously in use in the church from 1760. Norman Evans notes that the earlier font consisted of this marble basin supported on a classical pedestal.

 

The font was installed under the tower until the end of the nineteenth century when it was moved to the foot of the steps on the South side. During the re-ordering of 2016 it was moved back to the foot of the tower, creating a larger space for families to gather at baptism services. When not in use it is clearly visible through the glass doors from the West end.