Church of Saint-Martin

The protected late Gothic church can be found in the centre of Overijse. The heart of the church, including a visitor centre on grape cultivation, is protected heritage. Saint Martin is the archetypical patron saint of churches founded around 800.
This cross-shaped church was constructed out of sandstone. The tower has a Romanesque core from the twelfth century. The choir was built after a fire in 1489. The other parts of the church were struck by a second fire and have been restored during the seventeenth century. The first fire killed 300 persons. The second fire burned a big part of the village to ashes.
A tombstone in the choir gives access to the family crypt of Horne. The family tree and the family ties to the Belgian royalty are explained in the sacristy. Elsewhere in the church you can find the tombstone of Maria Lips, sister of Justus Lipsius. He was a famous humanist and professor in Leuven (born in Overijse in 1547).
The paintings in the transepts date back to the eighteenth and nineteenth century. They depict several subjects: the Supper at Emmaus, the Elevation of the Cross, Saint Helena recognising the true Cross and Our Lady giving the Rosary to Saint Dominic. The statue of Saint Martin in the left transept was a gift of the ex-combatants of the First World War from Overijse.
 

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