Baptismal Font - Saint-Cyr, Issoudun

This composite baptismal font consists of a substantial limestone bowl carved in high relief and set upon a plain cylindrical pedestal. The bowl is decorated with prominent Renaissance shell motifs, scrolling acanthus foliage, and small rosette flowers, all characteristic of the Italianate ornamental vocabulary that entered church furnishings in the Berry and Loire regions during the early to mid-16th century. The carving is vigorous and confidently modelled, with deeply undercut leaves and large scallop forms arranged symmetrically around the circumference. The rim, now worn and slightly chipped, contains a later lead lining, probably added in the 18th or 19th century.
The supporting base, by contrast, is undecorated and markedly simpler, suggesting that it is either earlier, possibly a survival from a medieval predecessor, or a later practical replacement chosen during a restoration phase. Composite fonts of this type, with Renaissance bowls set on unrelated supports, are relatively common in the region where fittings were adapted rather than replaced wholesale.
Context
The font belongs to a period when ecclesiastical sculpture in central France absorbed Renaissance decorative forms through pattern books and the influence of workshops active in Tours, Bourges, and the Loire valley. The shell motif, in particular, is widely used in 16th-century liturgical furnishings, including fonts, holy-water stoups, and sacrament tabernacles. Although the original medieval font of Saint-Cyr does not survive intact, this later bowl appears to have replaced it while incorporating local stylistic traditions.
Summary
A Renaissance limestone font bowl (c.1520–1560) richly carved with shells, acanthus, and rosettes, mounted on a plain cylindrical pedestal of different date. The lead-lined interior and varied stonework attest to successive phases of use and restoration within the church of Saint-Cyr, Issoudun.
