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BAPTISTERY (Baptislerium, in the Gree...

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Originally appearing in Volume V03, Page 370 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

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BAPTISTERY (Baptislerium, in the Greek Church 4wrurrilpiov)

BAPTISTERY (Baptislerium, in the See also:
GREEK
GREEK, ETRUSCAN AND
Greek See also:
CHURCH
CHURCH (according to most authorities derived from the Gr. Kvpcaxov [&wµa], " the Lord's [house]," and common to many Teutonic, Slavonic and other languages under various forms—Scottish kirk, Ger. Kirche, Swed. kirka, Dan. kirke, Russ. tserkov, Buig. cerk
CHURCH, FREDERICK EDWIN (1826-1900)
CHURCH, GEORGE EARL (1835–1910)
CHURCH, RICHARD WILLIAM (1815–189o)
CHURCH, SIR RICHARD (1784–1873)
Church 4wrurrilpiov) , the See also:

SEPARATE

separate See also:

hall or See also:

CHAPEL

chapel, connected with the See also:

early See also:

Christian Church, in which the catechumens were instructed and the See also:

SACRAMENT

sacrament of See also:

BAPTISM

baptism administered. The name baptistery is also given to a See also:

KIND (O. E. ge-cynde, from the same root as is seen in " kin," supra)

kind of chapel in a large church, which serves the same purpose. The baptistery proper was commonly a circular See also:

BUILDING

building, although sometimes it had eight and sometimes twelve sides, and consisted of an ante-See also:

ROOM

room (apoaeXeos otKOS) where the catechumens were instructed, and where before baptism they made their See also:

CONFESSION (Lat. confessio, from confiteor, acknowledge, confess)

confession of faith, and an inner apartment where the sacrament was administered. In the inner apartment the See also:

PRINCIPAL

principal See also:

OBJECT

object was the baptismal See also:

FONT (Lat. fans, " fountain " or " spring," Ital. fonte, Fr. les fonts)

font (xoXvpk8pa, or See also:

PISCINA

piscina), in which those to be baptized were immersed thrice. Three steps led down to the See also:

FLOOR (from O. Eng. flor, a word common to many Teutonic languages, cf. Dutch vloer, and Ger. Flur, a field, in the feminine, and a floor, masculine)

floor of the font, and over it was suspended a See also:

gold or See also:

SILVER

silver See also:

dove; while on the walls were commonly pictures of the scenes in the See also:

LIFE

life of See also:

John the Baptist. The font was at first always of See also:

stone, but latterly metals were often used. Baptisteries belong to a See also:

period of the church when See also:

GREAT

great See also:

numbers of adult catechumens were baptized, and when See also:

IMMERSION (Lat. immersio, dipping),

immersion was the See also:

RULE

rule. We find little or no trace of them before See also:

CONSTANTINE

Constantine made See also:

CHRISTIANITY

Christianity the See also:

state See also:

religion, i.e. before the 4th See also:

CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century; and as early as the 6th century the baptismal font was built in the See also:

PORCH (through the Fr. porehe, from Lat. porticus; the Ital. equivalent is portico, corresponding to the Gr. vapOi ; Ger. Vorhalle)

porch of the church and then in the church itself. After the 9th century few baptisteries were built, the most noteworthy of later date being those at See also:

Pisa, See also:

Florence, See also:

PADUA (Lat. Patavium ; Ital. Padova)

Padua, See also:

Lucca and See also:

PARMA

Parma. Some of the older baptisteries were very large, so large that we hear of See also:

COUNCILS

councils and synods being held in them. It was necessary to make them large, because in the early Church it was customary for the See also:

bishop to baptize all the catechumens in his See also:

DIOCESE (formed on Fr. diocese, in place of the Eng. form diocess—current until the 19th century—from Lat. dioecesis, med. Lat. variant diocesis, from Gr. Swucio•tc, " house-keeping," " administration," &miceas, " to keep house," " to govern ")

diocese (and so baptisteries are commonly found attached to the See also:

CATHEDRAL

cathedral and not to the See also:

PARISH (Gr. irapouda, district, neighbourhood; 7r&poucos, one dwelling near or beside, from crap&, OtKOS, house; Lat. paroecur, Late Lat. parochia; cf. Fr. paroisse)

parish churches), and also because the rite was performed only thrice in the See also:

YEAR

year. (See BAPTISM.) During the months when there were no baptisms the baptistery doors were sealed with the bishop's See also:

seal.

Some baptisteries were divided into two parts to separate the sexes; sometimes the church had two baptisteries, one for each See also:

SEX (Lat. sexes; possibly connected with secure, to cut)

sex. A fireplace was often provided to warm the neophytes after immersion. Though baptisteries were forbidden to be used as See also:

BURIAL

burial-places by the See also:

COUNCIL (Lat. concilium, from cum, together, and the root cal, to call)

council of See also:

AUXERRE

Auxerre (578) they were not uncommonly used as such. Many of the early archbishops of See also:

Canterbury were buried in the baptistery there. Baptisteries, we find from the records of early councils, were first built and used to correct the evils arising from the practice of private baptism. As soon as Christianity made such progress that baptism became the rule, and as soon as immersion gave See also:

PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place to sprinkling, the See also:

ancient baptisteries were no longer necessary. They are still in See also:

general use, however, in Florence and Pisa. The baptistery of the Lateran must be the earliest ecclesiastical building still in use. A large See also:

PART

part of it remains as built by Constantine. The central See also:

AREA

area, where is the See also:

basin of the font, is an octagon around which stand eight See also:

PORPHYRY (IlopcPisptos) (A.D. 233-c. 304)

porphyry columns, with See also:

MARBLE (from Lat. marmor, Gr. pApµapos, shining stone)

marble capitals and See also:

ENTABLATURE (Lat. in, and tabula, a tablet)

entablature of classical See also:

FORM (Lat. forma)

form; outside these are an See also:

AMBULATORY (Med. Lat. ainbulatorium, a place for walking, from ambulare, to walk)

ambulatory and See also:

OUTER

outer walls forming a larger octagon. Attached to one See also:

side, towards the Lateran See also:

BASILICA

basilica, is a See also:

FINE

fine See also:

BAPTISTS

BAPTISTS porch with two See also:

NOBLE, SIR ANDREW (1832- )

noble porphyry columns and richly carved capitals, bases and entablatures. The circular church of See also:

SANTA

Santa Costanza, also of the 4th century, served as a baptistery and contained the See also:

TOMB (Gr. Tuµ/3a, Tuµ(3os, probably allied to Lat. tumulus, literally a swelling, tumere, to swell)

tomb of the daughter of Constantine.

This is a remarkably perfect structure with a central See also:

DOME (Lat domus, house; Ital. duomo, cathedral)

dome, columns and mosaics of classical See also:

FASHION (adapted from Fr. facon, agon, Lat. factio, making, facere, to do or make)

fashion. Two side niches contain the earliest known mosaics of distinctively Christian subjects. In one is represented See also:

Moses receiving the • Old See also:

Law, in the other See also:

Christ delivers to St See also:

Peter the New Law—a See also:

CHARTER (Lat. charta, carta, from Gr. Xap-rns, originally for papyrus, material for writing, thence transferred to paper and from this material to the document, in O. Eng. boc, book)

charter sealed with the X P See also:

MONOGRAM (from Late Lat. monogramma, in Late Gr. µovoypaµµov, from µovos, single, ypaµµa, letter)

monogram. Another baptistery of the earliest times has recently been excavated at See also:

AQUILEIA

Aquileia. Ruins of an early baptistery have also been found at Salona. At See also:

Ravenna exist two famous baptisteries encrusted with fine mosaics, one of them built in the See also:

MIDDLE

middle of the 5th century, and the other in the 6th. To the latter date also belongs a large baptistery decorated with mosaics at See also:

Naples. In the See also:

East the See also:

METROPOLITAN (Lat. metropolitanus, Gr. µnrpoiroXtrns)

metropolitan baptistery at See also:

Constantinople still stands at the side of the See also:

MOSQUE (through Fr. mosquie; Span. mezquila, from Arab. masjid, sajada, to adore)

mosque which was once the patriarchal church of St See also:

SOPHIA (1630-1714)

Sophia; and many others, in See also:

SYRIA

Syria, have been made known to us by See also:

RECENT

recent researches, as also have some belonging to the churches of See also:

North See also:

Africa. In See also:

France the most famous early baptistery is St See also:

JEAN

Jean at See also:

POITIERS

Poitiers, and other early examples exist at Riez, See also:

FREJUS

Frejus and See also:

Aix. In See also:

England, a detached baptistery is known to have been associated with the cathedral of Canterbury. See See also:

HEFELE, KARL JOSEF VON (1809-1893)

Hefele's Concilien, passim; Du Cange, Glossary, See also:

ARTICLE (from Lat. articulus, a joint)

article " Baptisterium "; See also:

Eusebius, Hist. Eccl. x.

4; See also:

BINGHAM, JOSEPH (1668-1723)

Bingham's Antiquities of the Christian Church, See also:

BOOK

book xi. (W. R.

End of Article: BAPTISTERY (Baptislerium, in the Greek Church 4wrurrilpiov)

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