Eglise Saint Sebastian

Now, while this church at the far end of Place du Vinâve may have a discreet appearance, it contains a number of treasures from the Abbaye de Stavelot, so it’s not to be missed.

The current Église Saint-Sébastien replaced an older church, and its late-Baroque design comes from the middle of the 18th century (It was consecrated in 1754).

Many of the fittings have been moved here from the abbey church, and among them there’s an 18th-century oak pulpit and a 16th-century stone baptismal font, while the stations of the cross date to 1724 and come from Église Saint-Marguerite in Liège.

The organ dates from 1841 and was made by the famous Aachen organ builder Korfmacher.

But the absolute must-see is the abbey’s reliquary shrine of Saint Remaclus, a superlative piece of 13th-century Mosan goldsmithery, two metres long and with images of Christ and Mary at each end.

Another important work is the 17th-century reliquary bust of Poppo of Stavelot (977-1048) one of the abbey’s best known abbots, and one of the first Flemish pilgrims to the Holy Land.

Willem Vandenameele