Toller Fratrum font

‘Weird but compelling’ is the best description of the font in the little church of St Basil, Toller Fratrum. It is probably 1000 years old, but its origins are lost in the mists of that long history. All round it are crudely carved heads and figures, some with arms outstretched upwards, plus an unidentified animal with one head and two bodies. The scene creates a rather eerie feeling, but its meaning remains a mystery.

Nearby is a striking fragment of a carved panel showing Mary Magdalene washing Christ’s feet.

Fratrum is Latin for ‘of the brothers’, referring to the Knights Hospitaller, who once owned the manor. The church is Victorian, built on the site of a much older chapel.

Nearest postcode: DT2 0EW
OS reference: SY578974
What3words: firelight.luxury.insiders