Lily font

The Lily font
The Lily Font on top of the Charles II Font and Basin. The Christening of The Prince of Wales, 25 January 1842. George Hayter, oil on canvas, 1842-5. Buckingham Palace, London.

The Lily font is a large silver gilt baptismal font used in the christening services of members of the British Royal family. It is part of the Royal Collection and is kept at the Jewel House when not in use. The Lily font has been used for the baptism of all the children and grandchildren of Queen Elizabeth II except that of Princess Eugenie of York.

Design

The font was commissioned by Queen Victoria from the silversmiths Edward Barnard and Sons, for the christening of her first child, Victoria, Princess Royal on 10 February 1840, her parents' first wedding anniversary.[1][2] The font is made from silver gilt that gives the appearance of gold. Three winged cherubs sit on the base of the font, sitting above the royal arms of Victoria, Prince Albert and the Princess Royal. Albert assisted with the design of the font.[2] The cherubs are plucking lyres, above them leaves reach up to support the bowl that is edged by cascading waterlilies. The Lily font sits upon either the 1660 font and its basin or the Christening Ewer and Basin during christening ceremonies.[3]

Use

The Lily font has been used for the baptism of all the children and grandchildren of Queen Elizabeth II except that of Princess Eugenie of York. Eugenie's baptism in 1990 was the first public baptism for a member of the British royal family.[4]

The Lily font was taken to St. Mary Magdalene Church, Sandringham for the christening of Princess Charlotte of Cambridge in Norfolk in 2015. It was reported that this was the first time the font had left London in its history, though it had previously been kept in Windsor, from where it had been taken to London in 1926 for the christening of Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth II).[5][6]

References

  1. ↑ "Barnard & Co. - The Lily font". The Lily font. Royal Collection. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  2. 1 2 Hannah Pakula (13 November 1997). An Uncommon Woman. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-0-684-84216-5.
  3. ↑ Keay, Anna (2012). The Crown Jewels: The Official Illustrated History. London: Thames and Hudson. p. 131. ISBN 978-0-50028982-2.
  4. ↑ Siân Ranscombe (19 July 2015). "Prince George's christening gown: the true story". The Telegraph. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  5. ↑ Sarah Bradford (28 February 2002). Elizabeth: A Biography of Her Majesty the Queen. Penguin Books Limited. pp. 59–. ISBN 978-0-14-100655-0.
  6. ↑ "Princess Charlotte christening: royal baby to be baptised with 175-year-old ornate font which will leave London for first time". The Evening Standard. 5 July 2015. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
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