Christening quaichs in the Skye Museum of Island Life
As we’ve noted elsewhere on the Quaichshop website, a range of different designs of quaichs have long been used to celebrate the birth of a baby, to toast the new child’s health, and also at christening ceremonies. Quaichs, and other vessels such as porringers and bowls, have been given as gifts to new babies right back to mediaeval times. Quaichs have now become traditional baptismal gifts, in Scotland and overseas, in common with their central role in many of life’s other landmark occasions including, of course, wedding ceremonies.
Though these vessels are now regarded as collectable items, rather than practical objects, they often continue to be used in people’s later lives for other purposes – sugar bowls, confectionery bowls and pin dishes, to name but a few. We even know of a group of like-minded people across the Atlantic who are keen on the arts and practices of traditional shaving, and use metal (mostly pewter) quaichs to hold their shaving creams or foams!
Particularly here in Scotland, quaichs have always been popular christening gifts, due to their association with Loving Cups and Cups of Friendship. Many key rites of passage are toasted communally, by passing round a quaich containing a warming dram, and a quaich received at baptism or christening stays with the individual throughout his or her life.
Baptism is one of the two sacraments recognised by the Church of Scotland – the other is the Sacrament of Holy Communion. In the case of the baptism of an infant, the Church expects at least one parent (or other close family member) either to be a member of the Church, or to be willing to become a member. In the baptismal service, those appropriate adults profess their own faith and promise to give the child a Christian upbringing. In the case of adult baptism, the person himself or herself makes the appropriate promises.
Baptism is normally administered in church, at Sunday worship in front of the congregation. This emphasises the nature of the sacrament as incorporation into the body of Christ and the life of the Church. The Church of Scotland notes that there is a little more flexibility in the case of acute situations, for example in a hospital emergency.
The Skye Museum of Island Life provides a couple of lovely examples of where the rules surrounding baptism have had to be bent slightly. Getting to church from remote dwellings in island communities could, one would imagine, be problematic especially in winter, or during otherwise adverse weather conditions. The Skye Museum’s quaichs are two lovely examples, quite different in construction, of baptismal vessels which ministers took out of the church to take to individual dwellings, presumably to be used in conjunction with water from the church’s baptismal font. The ceremony could then be taken to the family in question, rather than the other way around!
As you can see, one quaich has a bowl made of wood, with a metal rim and a cartouche on the side, but unusually the vessel has no handles. The other example is entirely metal, but with prominent, ornately pierced lugs. Many thanks to Margaret MacDonald of the Skye Museum, who kindly provided me with the image and supporting information.
Another fascinating little vignette illustrating the variety of ways in which these beautiful traditional vessels are woven into the fabric of the lives of Scotland’s communities. If anyone knows of any other such tales, please share them with us at Quaichshop.