The Yser and the Belgian Coast: An Illustrated History and GuidePneu Michelin (Firm)
History
The Yser and the Belgian Coast: An Illustrated History and Guide
Pneu Michelin (Firm)
Belgium -- Guidebooks; World War, 1914-1918 -- Battlefields -- Guidebooks; Yser, Battle of the, Belgium, 1914
_The Virgin and Child_ (on the altar of the Holy Sacrament, at the end
of the right nave), was the gift of Jean Mouscroen, the donor of the
altar, who paid a hundred ducats for it to the great sculptor in 1514.
Its origin, which was long disputed, is now definitely established
_(Photo, p. 100)_.
The tombs of Charles-le-Téméraire and Marie of Burgundy, originally
placed in the choir where they worthily contributed to the decoration
of the sanctuary, were later removed to a closed chapel on the right,
formerly the old _Chanterie_--reconstituted in 1812 of the _écoutète_
Pierre Lanchals, who was tortured and beheaded in 1488 by the city
burghers. His tombstone is still to be seen there, but it is the
Burgundian tombs which retain the visitor's attention. Reproductions
of the latter abound, and several European museums (among others,
Cluny, Paris) possess plaster facsimiles. That of Marie is sixty years
earlier than her father's, and is greatly superior both in style and
execution. It is the work of Pierre Beckee of Brussels; the other is
by Junghelinck, a native of Antwerp. The _sarcophagi_ are in black
marble with recumbent life-size statues of gilded copper; on the sides
are the enamelled armorial bearings of the numerous domains belonging
to the House of Burgundy. Philippe-le-Beau dedicated this mausoleum to
his mother, who died at the age of 25 in consequence of a fall from her
horse. Later, the remains of Charles-le-Téméraire, killed at Nancy,
having been taken to Bruges, Philippe II had a tomb built for them on
the lines of the first one. At the time of the Revolution the tombs
were taken to pieces and hidden; the parts were reassembled in 1816,
thanks to a subsidy of 10,000 francs granted by Napoleon.
The church contains many 17th and 18th century pictures, several
remarkable works dating from the 15th and 16th centuries, paintings,
panels and polyptics, among others an _Adoration of the Shepherds_ by
P. Pourbus, a triptych (first chapel on the left of the Ambulatory),
and a _Transfiguration_ triptych, the central panel of which is
attributed to Mistaert (first chapel on the south side-aisle).
Claeyssens, Van Orley, Marc Gheeraerts, Gérard Zeghers _(Adoration
of the Wise Men_ (western wall)) etc.... are likewise represented. In
the Ambulatory, on the left-hand side, is the Gruuthuuse _tribune_ of
carved stone and wood, which used to communicate with the neighbouring
house and was built by Louis de Gruuthuuse in 1472. Several other
tombs are worthy of note, among others, that of _Gérard David_, the
famous painter of _The Unjust Judge_; deceased in 1523, he was buried
near the tower staircase. The Sacristy contains some fine 16th century
sacerdotal ornaments named after Marie of Burgundy.
The Cathedral of St. Saviour.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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