Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Church of St.Calixte of Lambersart finds its origins in the twelfth century, linked to the veneration of relics of Pope Calixte I, brought by Évrard de Frioul in the ninth century via the Abbey of Cysoing. The medieval building, enlarged in 1504 by two side chapels, was transformed into a three-nave hall church before 1603. A bell dating from this year, listed as a historical monument, still bears witness to this today.

In the 19th century, the church, which had become old and small, was replaced by a new building commissioned by Mayor Félix Clouet des Pesruches and designed by architect Henri Boudin. The works, financed by donations collected in 1876 by the parish priest Jean-Baptiste Cazier, began in 1894. The church was dedicated in 1896 and completed in 1898, mixing neo-Roman styles (baths in the middle of the hangar) and neo-Gothic styles (crossed dogives). A major restoration in 2013 restored its original colours to walls and vaults.

The building is distinguished by its regional and Belgian materials: Deûlémont bricks, Saint-Dizier stones, Basècles (black marble), Euville (white limestone), and Soignies (blue stone). The furniture, made between 1895 and 1902, comes from renowned workshops: Gustave Pattein (Oak Cabinet), Modeste Verlinden (Marble and Bronze altars), and Gaston Lefèbvre (Atelier of the 1920s). The organ, by Pierre Schyven (1894), and the stained glass windows signed Latteux-Bazin, complete this heritage.

Among the treasures preserved are 14 18th-century funerary slabs, a relic of Saint Calixte (palais bone), and two 1850 wooden statues classified as historical monuments. The bell tower also houses the bell "Jesus" of 1603, while the rear gallery permanently exhibits liturgical objects under the title "Treasures of Saint Calixte".

External links