Saint Bavo Parish Church

The parish church of Saint Bavo in its current form is a prominent feature in the center of the municipality of Boechout. The oldest parts of the church building are the 15th-century choir and 17th-century transept. The nave and the tower were newly constructed at the end of the 19th century. The building is surrounded by its former, hedged cemetery, transformed into a lawn on which the war memorial 1914-1918 is located, along with a memorial for J.F. Willems from 1848 against the south transept.

History
The first mention of the Saint Bavo Church in Boechout dates back to a document from 974 in which Emperor Otto II donated the church back to the Saint Bavo Abbey of Ghent. This abbey received the tithes from the village of Boechout. The contract concerning the construction of the tower dates from 1431, while the choir is dated to the end of the 15th or the beginning of the 16th century. In 1542 and 1583, fires occurred, but the choir and tower were spared. Notably, until the 17th century, the tower stood apart from the choir. Major restoration works began in 1639, and the new transept and nave were completed the following year. The tower underwent some repairs in 1803 and in 1834 according to the design of F. Stoop. In 1841-1842, the Gothic nave was demolished due to the construction of side aisles designed by Ferdinand Berckmans (1803-1854). During these works, the transepts were equipped with pointed arch windows. According to the design of provincial master builder Eugeen Gife (1819-1890), some improvements were made in 1863 (public tender on May 7, 1863, completed on December 17, 1863), where the ceilings in the nave and transept were replaced, the main aisle was raised, and new windows were placed in the transept along with a door in the northern sacristy.

The most significant change took place at the end of the 19th century. The tower and nave were demolished, and a new church was built, two bays longer than the old building. The new church was constructed according to a design by architect Gife. The works began in 1897 and were completed in March 1898. In 1910-1911, a storage place was added, designed by Louis Gife (1854-1929). Although according to archival documents from the period of 1890 the new church was supposed to match the style and resemble the demolished parts, this was thoroughly deviated from. The old tower was made of white natural stone; in the reconstruction, two bays further from the choir, brick was used with bands of white natural stone. Also, the facades of the church building itself were enlivened in this manner. This was intended to connect with the existing preserved facades of the transept that had been decorated in the same way. The covering of the side aisles with a succession of gabled roofs provided an architecturally responsible solution for creating light in the main aisle. As a result, the relatively high windows were completely free, which was no longer the case after the widening of the church as carried out by Ferdinand Berckmans in 1841-1842. The roof of the then added side aisles immediately connected to the roof of the nave, completely closing off the existing windows. The decorative interior painting is by A. Callens and dates from 1911. The war damage from World War I, namely to gutters, slates, and masonry, was repaired in 1917-1918 according to the design of Louis Gife. In 1925, some minor repairs were also carried out. During World War II, stained glass windows, masonry, and slates were damaged. Temporary repairs took place in 1945-1947, the definitive repairs around 1950 and in 1954. The choir was fitted in 1958-1959 with three stained glass windows designed by J. Van Ael, executed by J. Van de Broeck. The preserved stained glass windows were restored by Calders in 1959.

During the installation of underfloor heating in the church, some archaeological findings were made. Two Merovingian graves, a grave from the early Middle Ages, a grave from the high Middle Ages, and several undated medieval graves were found. In addition, traces of the early medieval predecessor of the church were also discovered.

Description
The floor plan of Saint Bavo Church includes a west tower, a three-nave nave of seven bays, the 17th-century transept, and the 15th-century choir with a three-sided closure. There is a rectangular sacristy on the south facade; the old 17th-century sacristy still exists on the north facade. The brick building is characterized by belt courses and a plinth of sandstone; the choir and the northern sacristy are completely constructed from sandstone.

The square west tower has four sections under a sharpened spire; the angled buttresses at the west corners of the tower feature two cuts. A pentagonal stair turret has been added to the north facade. A recessed basket arch door and an adjoining pointed arch window with neo-Gothic tracery are set in a continuous, profiled framing. The oak door is characterized by a broker with a small column and scroll capital on a polygonal plinth, dated 1871, on which a Saint Bavo statuette under a canopy was mounted, dated 1652. The tower is further equipped with pointed arch bell openings with wedge blocks and a water table and is topped by scaffolding holes under the roofline. The nave, transept, choir, and sacristy are covered by slate gabled roofs; the nave has a metal framework. The side aisles are designed as chapels under gabled roofs. The division of bays in both the side and main aisle is emphasized by buttresses with pointed roofs. The 17th-century transept features intersecting buttresses and scaffolding holes. Abundant light enters through pointed arch windows with neo-Gothic tracery. In the facade of the southern transept arm, a Saint Andrew's cross is constructed with black bricks. The bays of the choir, with high Gothic pointed arch windows, are also defined by buttresses with two cuts; the facades are completed with scaffolding holes under the roofline. The rectangular sacristy on the south facade is openwork with cross windows in hard stone.

Interior
Saint Bavo Church is a basilica with pointed arches on columns with polygonal plinths and foliage capitals following the Brabant pattern. The brick ribbed vault rests on wall elements with foliage capitals. The side aisles are vaulted with ribbed vaults on consoles, while the choir has a ribbed vault on wall elements.

Furnishings
Polychrome wooden statues by the brothers De Cuyper (circa 1844). Neo-Gothic main altar (1910); side altars (early 20th century). Oak pulpit, with stairs decorated with ironwork, by Cornelis Marck (1770). Two oak confessionals with angel herms (1660); two oak confessionals with angel herms (second half of the 16th century). Choir stalls featuring representations of the evangelists (1897).

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