Saint Paul’s, the Antwerp Dominican church, a revelation
No convent church without a choir
Further decoration of the choirIn a church with a cruciform floor plan, the part of the church that lies on the side of the nave opposite to the transept. The main altar is in the choir.:
Funeral monuments, statues of saints
and the former choir screen
The funeral monuments
Because in 1629 the troops of the Dutch States Party had definitely taken his cathedralThe main church of a diocese, where the bishop’s seat is. city ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Michael Ophovius had to take refuge. He found accommodation for himself in the Antwerp Dominican conventComplex of buildings in which members of a religious order live together. They follow the rule of their founder. The oldest monastic orders are the Carthusians, Dominicans, Franciscans, and Augustinians [and their female counterparts]. Note: Benedictines, Premonstratensians, and Cistercians [and their female counterparts] live in abbeys; Jesuits in houses. and in the church for his funeral monument, fit for a bishopPriest in charge of a diocese. See also ‘archbishop’. of his time. It was completed two years before his death in 1637. The Avesnes stone monument, with the statue of the kneeling bishop, has been attributed to Hans van Mildert.
With their funeral monuments in the sanctuary bishops kept ‘acting’ life-size in the choral prayers. With their folded hands they do not just indicate the position of the high altarThe altar is the central piece of furniture used in the Eucharist. Originally, an altar used to be a sacrificial table. This fits in with the theological view that Jesus sacrificed himself, through his death on the cross, to redeem mankind, as symbolically depicted in the painting “The Adoration of the Lamb” by the Van Eyck brothers. In modern times the altar is often described as “the table of the Lord”. Here the altar refers to the table at which Jesus and his disciples were seated at the institution of the Eucharist during the Last Supper. Just as Jesus and his disciples did then, the priest and the faithful gather around this table with bread and wine. in the East, but they also bridged the monks’ prayers in the choir stallsA series of seats, usually in wood, along the long sides of the choir. These seats are reserved for those who pray and sing the choir prayers. with the perpetual adoration in the hereafter. Ophovius’ sculpted face evokes his portrait (in common habitGeneral name for the typical clothing of a particular religious order.
A long-sleeved, unbuttoned robe down to the feet, usually with a hood attached. This attire is typical of monks and nuns.
) by P.P. Rubens, which was popularised in many versions, one of which is in the entrance hall of the treasury. Later (ca. 1670?) the theme of adoration was demonstrated further with the statue of Our Lady with Child (Claudius de Cock). In the crowning a weeping alabaster putto holding a torch upside down and an hour glass, with his foot on a skull, he points out transient life: memento mori!
On the funeral monument of Jan Frans Capello and Maria Boxhorn, which is sometimes attributed to Peter II Verbruggen, the commissioner, bishop Marius Ambrosius Capello, has primarily honoured himself. The bishop is kneeling down in front of a prie-dieu. The patron of his monastic name ‘Ambrosius’, the blessed Dominican Ambrose of Siena (1220 – 1287), stimulates his protégé to read in a book. It has been remarkably combined with the statue of the resurrected Christ, high up against the wall.
The funeral monument at the southern side, which has been attributed to Andries Colyns de Nole, cherishes the memory of Henri de Varick, bailiff and margrave of Antwerp († 1630), and of his wife Anna Damant († 1641). Notice the bailiff’s spurs: they really roll! Both figures wear big ruffs, and cuffs of the same type adorn the fringes of their sleeves.
Because in the 19th century it was no longer allowed to bury in towns and churches, the funeral monument of Jacobus de Vries and Maria van Elsacker (Jean-Baptist de Boeck and Jean-Baptist van Wint, 1868) is a cenotaph. On it the deceased have not been represented, but instead their devotion (for the rosary), i.e. ‘Our Lady hands the rosary to SaintThis is a title that the Church bestows on a deceased person who has lived a particularly righteous and faithful life. In the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Church, saints may be venerated (not worshipped). Several saints are also martyrs. Dominic’. The commissioner was their son, Jacobus Antonius de Vries, who was a church wardenA lay person who is a member of the fabric committee. In this position, he/she is co-responsible for the material and financial management of the building and all the church’s property.. Later he also donated the pulpit.
The statues of the dominican saints (1631-1700)
Eight life size white stone statues of Dominican saints, crowning funeral monuments between the windows in the choir, functioned as examples for the Dominicans facing them in the choir stalls. The series of statues progressed rather slowly: the first ones date from the period 1631-1637, the last statue completed the series only in 1700!
The number of saints might tempt us to ‘find’ a deeper religious meaning and a relation with the eight Beatitudes. However such Biblical inspiration was not the foundation of the series of statues. First of all the number of statues was determined by the number of wall sections available between the windows and moreover there are no specific indications to identify one of the eight evangelical Beatitudes with a single Dominican saint.
At the North
Saint Dominic (Andries Colyns de Nole, as the first in the 1631-1637 series.)
To the right of the high altar the founder of the order is in the place of honour.
Saint PeterHe was one of the twelve apostles. He was a fisherman who, together with his brother Andrew, was called by Jesus to follow Him. He is the disciple most often mentioned In the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. His original name was Simon. He got his nickname Peter (i.e. rock) from Jesus, who, according to tradition, said that He would build His Church on this rock. of Verona, alias Saint Peter the MartyrSomeone who refused to renounce his/her faith and was therefore killed. Many martyrs are also saints. (Jan-Pieter I van Baurscheit, 1700)
Because the popular preacherA priest, deacon or lay person who explains the Bible readings during the celebration of Mass. Sometimes a preacher also acts outside of Mass celebrations (and in the past he did so regularly) to clarify certain points of faith and to encourage the churchgoers to a more Christian way of life. (Verona ca. 1205-1252) was killed by two hired assassins we can see him here with his head cleft by a sabre and his breast pierced by a sword. Heavy drops of blood pour from this wound. Dying he writes the word ‘Credo’ (‘I believe’, the beginning of the Catholic creed) on the ground with his own blood.
Thomas Aquinas (Andries Colyns de Nole, 1635-1636)
The great scholar (12225-1274) was acclaimed “Doctor Angelicus” (“Angelic Doctor”). He left an enormous amount of writings, including the Summa Theologica, which accounts for the pen and inkwell as his attributes. In art he can also be recognized by the chain on his chest with on it the sun of philosophy, an allusion to the conquering light of divine truth. Because the office of Corpus Christi and the hymn Lauda Sion is to his credit, he also carries a sun monstranceA decorated glass holder on a base, in which a consecrated host can be placed for worship. In general, there are two types of monstrances: the ray monstrance and the tower monstrance, with the name referring to the shape of the object. The tower monstrance is very similar to the reliquary, which was very popular before the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament became widespread.. In line with the legend two angels gird on a ‘chastity belt’ that extinguishes lust in the loins. With the inscriptions they carry the putti at both sides of the console refer to this: “cingulum” and “castitatis”. In Saint Paul’s church there was also a brotherhood around this so-called “Thomas’ little rope”.
Saint Hyacinth (Artus I Quellinus, ca. 1650?)
(Kamień Śląski in Silesia 1185 – Krakow 1257). He preached in Northern and Eastern Europe, and for this he was also called ‘the ApostleThis is the name given to the principal twelve disciples of Jesus, who were sent by Him to preach the gospel. By extension, the term is also used for other preachers, such as the Apostle Paul and Father Damien (“The Apostle of the Lepers”). of Poland’. When the Tatars took the town of Kiev, Hyacinth could take the consecratedIn the Roman Catholic Church, the moment when, during the Eucharist, the bread and wine are transformed into the body and blood of Jesus, the so-called transubstantiation, by the pronouncement of the sacramental words. wafers in a ciboriumA covered vessel in the shape of a cup that is used to keep consecrated hosts in the tabernacle and to distribute them at communion. from the cathedral at the very last moment. Here it is represented as a monstrance. According to the legend Hyacinth also took a very heavy statue of the Virgin Mary, which by miracle became as light as a feather.
At the South
Saint Catherine of Siena (Pieter I Verbruggen, 1646, after a design by Andries Colyns de Nole)
This member of the third order and mystic (1347 – 1380) in a vision got betrothed to Jesus and as a sign of this she has received a ring. Moreover she bears the stigmata, the five wounds of Jesus. In this intense conjunction with Jesus she has exchanged her crown with his crown of thorns. And therefore she smilingly looks at the cross in her hands.
Saint Antoninus Pierozzi of Florence (Peter I Verbruggen, ca. 1650)
Antoninus, archbishopThe bishop in charge of the archdiocese. In actual practice, this also means that he is the head of the church province. of Florence († 1459). Although the scales may refer to canonSomeone who, together with other canons, is attached to a cathedral or collegiate church and whose main task is to ensure choral prayer. law as his specialty, here the legendary ‘Deo gratias’ scales are concerned. The donation in kind a farmer gave was paltry but this did not prevent Antoninus from giving thanks only: the sheet of paper mentioning Antoninus’ usual answer “Deo gratias” (Thanks be to God) turned out to be heavier.
Saint Vincent Ferrer (Peter I Verbruggen, 1643, after a design by Andries Colyns de Nole).
As he was one of the most famous preachers of his time, who was able to mobilize entire crowds, this Spaniard (1350 – 1419) has his left hand in a rhetoric gesture. He warned his audience of the last judgment, which might explain the sculls as ‘memento mori’ in the cornucopias, which flank the base.
Saint Raymond of Peñafort (Peter I Verbruggen, 1660)
This Catalan (ca. 1175 – 1275) was the author of the first code of canon law. As an erudite professor and patron of jurists he reads from a book (openmouthed). Moreover he was a popular fatherPriest who is a member of a religious order. confessor.
The former choir screen
(Peter I Verbruggen, 1654-1655)
A screen that screened off the choir from the nave gave the fathers the opportunity to pray the offices more quietly and more comfortably, because they were not in the draught. Together with two side altars the entire construction was built in 1654-1655 by sculptor Peter I Verbruggen, after a design by carver Servais Cardon. At the same time the colossal screen was the support of the gigantic white marbled wooden triumphal crossLarge crucifix hanging in the first arch of the choir or chancel. In churches with a rood screen, the triumphal cross usually stands on this. on a globe, which dominated the church interior. The crucified Jesus was flanked by His mourning mother and John the evangelist. Both marble statues are now in the back of the northern transeptThe transept forms, as it were, the crossbeam of the cruciform floor plan. The transept consists of two semi transepts, each of which protrudes from the nave on the left and right.. Further this marble group of statues consisted of five mourning child angels, nearly 1 m tall, who sadly invited a look up at the Crucified Saviour. Four of them are now around the altar in the crossingThe central point of a church with a cruciform floor plan. The crossing is the intersection between the longitudinal axis [the choir and the nave] and the transverse axis [the transept].. Against the globe winged Chronos was sitting, armed with a scathe, indicating time on the zodiac with an arrow.
Above the gate to the choir was the so-called Portrait of Soriano, a type of painting of devotion with Saint Dominic in full length, called after the monastery of the same name. It was an ‘ex voto’ of the nineteen year old Barbara Spers, founder of the side altar that is now in the southern chapel
A small church that is not a parish church. It may be part of a larger entity such as a hospital, school, or an alms-house, or it may stand alone.
An enclosed part of a church with its own altar.
. On Saint Dominic’s altar, left, at the northern side, was the canvas Our Lady heals Saint Dominic’s wounds of self-chastisement by Gaspar de Crayer (p. 68), on the Holy Cross altar there was the Pieta by the same painter or by Huybrecht Dirix (p.54).
So as to have a freer view on the high altar of the new parish church the choir screen was pulled down in 1833. The choir organ by Jean-Baptiste Forceville had already indirectly been sold to Our Lady’s church in Broechem (Province of Antwerp).
The scientific justification of the data concerning the choir of Saint Paul’s in Antwerp can be found HERE.
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