The Notre Dame de Dinant

The Notre Dame de Dinant in French: Collegiate Notre Dame is a collegiate church dating back to the 13th century. It is an example of the Gothic Meuse style, named after the river the runs in front of it. The church is built entirely from the gray limestone of Dinant.

Picture by Pixabay

In the 10th century, a church was built in Romanesque style, right on the same spot, but it was destroyed in 1227 when a piece of overhanging rock came down. 36 people died during that incident. Only the Romanesque north portal was preserved. The church was rebuilt in the Gothic Meuse style. A new Gothic choir and transept were completed around 1250, followed by a nave and towers around 1280. In 1566 she got her quite separate, pear-shaped bell tower, which today shapes the skyline of Dinant. That bell tower was originally intended for the town hall. The choir has an impressive procession but it has no chapels. Both academic restorations were performed in the 19th century and after a bombing in 1914.

Picture by Pixabay

The stained glass window in the transept is the work of the Ghent glass artist Gustave Ladon (1863-1942) and one of the largest stained glass windows in Europe. It shows scenes from the Bible.