Baptismal Font

The late Romanesque bronze baptismal font, presumably cast in Hildesheim around 1226, stands in the central nave of Hildesheim Cathedral. It was commissioned by Wilbrand von Oldenburg – the canon of Hildesheim between 1211 and 1212 and the bishop of Paderborn from 1225 – who had depicted the donation on a relief of the font. The font is held by four male figures personifying the Four Rivers of Paradise. The side wall and top of the font are decorated with Old and New Testament depictions pertaining to baptism. The basin is embellished with the scenes of the Baptism of Christ, Crossing the Red Sea, Carrying the Ark of the Covenant across the River Jordan and the Adoration of the Virgin with Saints and Donor, while depictions of Christ and the Adulterous Woman, the Massacre of the Innocents, the Deeds of Mercy, and Aron’s Budding Rod can be seen on the lid. Commissioned by the museum in 1902, cast by the Gebrüder Küsthardt Company, Hildesheim.