Notre-Dame

Reliquary bust of Saint Perpetual

Remarkable piece, made by the goldsmith Philippe Lenoir from Ath in 1621 and containing the skull of Saint Perpetuus, patron of the city. Perpetuus was bishop of Maastricht. He was attached to the city of Dinant and died there in 617. He was buried in the small church of St Vincent. In the 11th century the body was moved to the collegiate church and put in a shrine that disappeared during the revolution. However, in the 17th century his head was placed in another silver relic holder that was kept out of the hands of the revolutionaries, thanks to the zeal of two inhabitants of Dinant. Until the 1960s, the bust was carried through the streets of Dinant in a procession on 15 August.

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Large stained glass window

The large church window - one of the largest in Europe, it is said - was erected in 1902 by the Ghent master Gustave Ladon. The work is inspired by the art of stained glass windows from the 13th century. Large, multi-part medallions representing the life of the Virgin and small circles representing the patriarchs, prophets and apostles alternate. This fresco is decorated with the image of the birth of the world and the coronation of the Virgin. The alternation of the narrative elements, the life of the Virgin, and the emblematic portraits are intended to inscribe the fate of Mary in the history of salvation. From the very beginning he made me (Sirach, 29,4): the Virgin is already present in God's plan.

The large altarpiece

The large altarpiece is part of the major renovations of the collegiate church in the second half of the 19th century, the aim of which was to give it its original Gothic character. Jean-Baptiste Béthune has drawn up the plan, the cut-out parts come from the Blanchaert studio in Ghent, the paintings are the work of the Liège painter Helbig. The whole takes its inspiration from the Brabant sculpted altarpieces of the 15th and 16th centuries. In any case, the liturgical evolution forces to classify, such as the insertion of the composition of the gilded tabernacle, a work by the Liège goldsmith Jules Wilmotte, into the centre.

Christ's Baptism in a Mosan landscape

This painting is the work of the painter Perpète Evrard (Dinant 1662-La Haye 1727). For the main characters, the artist interprets a painting by Pierre Mignard, painted for the church of Saint-Jean-Baptiste in Troyes. The originality of Evrard lies in the fact that he situates this episode of the Gospel in a Meuse landscape. The Christ is standing with his feet in a small tributary of the Meuse where, in the background, one can see the beautiful limestone tides. This process, common in the Baroque period, aims to clarify the sacred presence. It allows the viewer to imagine, next to a family Christ, close to man.

Dinanderie (Brassware)

Dinant owes its growth to the brass industry to which it has given its name. The collegiate church preserves some witnesses of a know-how that has been perpetuated to this day. In the choir, we can admire a 15th century lectern dish with a delicate flamboyant network. Six chandeliers are signed by active Dinant founders around 1640, their style hesitates between Renaissance and Baroque. The large paschal candlestick was made in 1880 by Victor Poncelet during the neo-Gothic transformations. Finally, we admire contemporary achievements, the altar (M-J. François, 1992) and the ambons (F. Favero, 2006) which constitute the heritage of an age-old know-how.

Bulbous bell tower

An anecdote is attached to this remarkable construction. Ordered in 1575 to be placed on the bridge, it proved too heavy and was placed on the collegiate church. In the 19th century, the sphere was taken through the mud by archaeologists and purists - Victor Hugo compared it to a water jug - or was a pleasure for romantic colourful amateur painters. On 23 August 1914, the Germans plundered the city and 624 inhabitants of Dinant merged. The sphere catches fire and collapses. His reconstruction in 1927 had a symbolic meaning. From now on, the sphere symbolises the regained honour of the inhabitants of Dinant.

Download the plan of the remarkable elements