Carolus Borromeuskerk

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Carolus Borromeuskerk
Former Jesuit church dedicated to "Ignatius van Loyola"

View of church on the Hendrik Conscienceplein.
51°13′16″N 4°24′17″E / 51.22111°N 4.40472°E / 51.22111; 4.40472
Country  Belgium
Denomination Carolus Borromeus
Architecture
Architect(s) Pieter Huyssens,
François d'Aguilon
Style Baroque
Administration
Parish Antwerp

The Carolus Borromeuskerk is a church in Antwerp, located at the Hendrik Conscienceplein. The church was formerly known for 39 ceiling pieces by Rubens that were lost in a fire when it was struck by lightning on July 18, 1718.

History

Interior.

The church was inspired by the Church of the Gesu, the mother church of the Society of Jesus, a Roman Catholic religious order also known as the Jesuits.[1]

Rubens ceiling paintings

In 1617-1618 Rubens painted two altarpieces, and during this time he was commissioned to paint the ceiling pieces, for which he made the designs and the execution was done mostly by pupils, including Anthony van Dyck.[2] A contract was drawn up in 1620 by Jacobus Tirinus and the paintings were delivered a year later in time for the consecration.[2] Rubens received 7,000 guilders for his works in the church, and though the lavish decorations including sculptures and other artwork were well received, Tirinus was dismissed in 1625 for going beyond his budget.[2]

After the fire in 1718 the church was rebuilt by Jan Pieter van Baurscheidt the Elder, in 1773 it was renamed Carolus Borromeuskerk. Since 1803 it has been in use as a parish church.[1] Besides works by Rubens the church has paintings by Gerard Seghers, Daniel Seghers, and Cornelis Schut.[1]

On August 30 2009 fire broke out again, but none of the important artworks were damaged.[3]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sint-Carolus-Borromeuskerk (Antwerp).

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 website Belgian heritage register
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Rubens: A Genius at Work : the Works of Peter Paul Rubens in the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium reconsidered. by Joost Vander Auwera, Sabine van Sprang, Véronique Bücken, Arnout Balis, Nora De Poorter, Nico van Hout, Christine Van Mulders, Michèle Van Kalck and by members of the Rubens project team (Hélène Dubois, Natasja Peeters, Bert Schepers and Tine Meganck).
  3. ↑ Fire in Carolus Borromeuskerk, www.demorgen.be, September 20 2009
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