Sint-Bavokerk

Sint-Bavokerk stands in Wilrijk, a district of Antwerp, with a neo-Gothic nave and choir built in brick. Its west tower rises 56 metres, combines six sections, and preserves a Gothic structure probably dating from the early sixteenth century.

A Romanesque stone church occupied the site in the eleventh or twelfth century, replacing a possible earlier chapel linked with Steytelinck. The building changed repeatedly. Troops under William of Orange nearly destroyed it in 1579, rebuilding followed between 1610 and 1615, and most of the church was replaced again in 1841 and 1842. The choir reached completion in 1849, while repairs followed wartime damage in 1945. Inside, a barrel vault covers three naves, and the east-facing altar follows a traditional church plan.

Several furnishings carry the story further: J.P. Ykens painted Calvary with Mary Magdalene in 1701, while the main altar dates from 1690 to 1692. Saint Ambrose and Saint Bavo appear in polychromed wooden statues from the second half of the seventeenth century. The northern and southern altars honour Our Lady and Saint Joseph, and date from 1724–1725 and 1738–1739. Jean-Baptiste Forceville built the original organ in 1711, while its case remains with the 1937 replacement.