Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk, Parish church in Sint-Niklaas, Belgium.
Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk is a Neo-Romanesque church building in Sint-Niklaas featuring a 50-meter tower crowned with a golden statue of Mary. The tower rises prominently above the town and serves as a visible landmark.
Construction began in 1841 under architect Louis Roelandt, marking a turning point in the city's religious architecture. The project shaped Sint-Niklaas' spiritual identity during the 19th century.
The interior's neo-Byzantine wall paintings by Godfried Guffens depict the cycle of the Sorrows of Mary, the Prophets, and the glorification of Christ. The organ was built by Brussels organ builder Pierre Schyven and has been restored. The church is dedicated to Our Lady, Help of Christians.
The church stands on the northwest side of the Grote Markt, not on a separate square. Since 2021 scaffolding has surrounded the tower because cracked stone was found in 2020; full restoration, including regilding of the statue and domes, was planned from 2024. Check locally before planning a visit.
In 2014 a pair of peregrine falcons nested in the tower for the first time, though without raising young; chicks were born in the years that followed. The birds return to the 50-metre tower, which was topped with a gilded statue of Mary in 1896.
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