ANTWERP | Start of restoration of St. Paul’s Church (Sint-Pauluskerk)

The restoration of St. Paul’s Church or Sint-Pauluskerk in Antwerp started this month, February 2025. The work on the protected church, which dates from 1571, is being carried out with the support of Onroerend Erfgoed Vlaanderen and will take approximately four years.

Antwerp municipal real estate agency AG Vespa started the restoration work in collaboration with Steenmeijer architects and Group Monument on 3 February. If everything goes according to plan, they will be completed by the end of 2028.

The church will undergo a thorough restoration on the outside and major maintenance on the inside:

On the outside, the contractor will repair the roofs and facades of the church building and the tower where necessary. The contractor will also tackle the facades of the sacristy and reconstruct the roof, replacing the temporary roof (which was installed after the fire in 1968).
The stained glass windows will be removed, cleaned and fitted with protective glazing on the outside. This provides a triple benefit: it provides extra insulation, which improves the indoor climate in the church (which is better for visitors and the rich art collection), protects the works of art against UV radiation, and protects the stained glass windows better against the elements.
On the inside, general painting and repair work is planned for the walls and vaults.
The stability of the church is being restored. In the past, several tie rods were removed in the St. Paul’s Church, which caused stability problems. This is now being remedied by replacing tie rods and adding extra ones. Tie rods absorb the forces that would otherwise push the pillars under the vaults outwards. Micro piles are also being drilled through the pillars on the rood screen under the organ, in order to stabilize the settings of the rood screen.

Alderman for Heritage Koen Kennis (N-VA: “The Gothic St. Paul’s Church dates from our Golden Age and has experienced a lot over the centuries. Today, the more than thorough restoration of roofs, facades, stained glass windows, etc. begins, and we are working on the stability of the building. If the planning goes according to plan, the works should be completed in 2028, sixty years after the terrible roof fire that hit this church. We must cherish our Antwerp heritage. Thanks to the support of the City of Antwerp and Onroerend Erfgoed Vlaanderen and thanks to the expertise of the restoration team, this church has a bright future ahead of it.”

Alderman for Religious Services Stijn De Rooster (N-VA): “In Antwerp, we are involved in monument care and we do not put our cultural-historical heritage under a bell jar but on a pedestal. As one of the Big Five, we must cherish, preserve and use the monumental Sint-Pauluskerk as a unique place where religion, heritage, art and culture come together in an inimitable way. However, the result of a restoration cannot be beautiful without getting our hands dirty. Heritage then temporarily becomes ‘werfgoed‘ [a play on words with werf, construction site and erfgoed, heritage, red.] in order to restore it to its former glory, keep it functional and pass it on to the next generations. From Monday we will start working with great care and craftsmanship so that this timeless institution can continue to tell the story of Antwerp to everyone who comes to visit and admire the Saint Paul’s Church.”

Flemish Minister of Immovable Heritage Ben Weyts (N-VA): “Anyone who is proud of Flemish heritage takes good care of it. We are going to restore the Saint Paul’s Church to its former glory. Finally a real, beautifully restored roof on the sacristy, for example, after the ‘temporary’ roof was there for more than 50 years. In addition, the roof covering and gutters of the church will also be completely renewed. This Antwerp gem has braved rain, wind, wars and disasters for 450 years: now we are going to prepare the church for the coming decades and hopefully centuries. The Saint Paul’s Church is a treasure trove of beautiful art and a beautiful piece of Flemish history. Something to be very proud of: proud of that from here.”

Information session

On Thursday 20 February, an information session will be held between 6 PM and 8 PM in the crypt of the church, entrance via Veemarkt. Local residents and interested parties will receive information and can ask their questions about the restoration project.

Accessibility and activities

In order to prepare the works, the church will be closed until 31 March. During this period, religious services will be held in the crypt.

From Tuesday 1 April, at the start of the tourist season, the site will be open to visitors every afternoon. The entrance will then be on the corner of Veemarkt and Zwartzustersstraat.

During the restoration, visitors will exceptionally come face to face with two Flemish masterpieces: ‘The Flagellation‘ by Pieter Paul Rubens and ‘The Carrying of the Cross‘ by Anthony Van Dyck.

In another location, students from the Antwerp Academy of Fine Arts will present their interpretation of these two paintings. These activities are an initiative of the churchwardenship, and more information will be published on www.sintpaulusantwerpen.be.

History

The St. Paul’s Church is located in a block of houses between the Veemarkt, Nosestraat, Sint-Paulusstraat and Zwartzustersstraat.

The historic church dates from 1571 and was part of a large Dominican monastery complex. In 1796, the French government decided to dissolve the monastery, and a few years later, the St. Paul’s Church became a parish church.

A major fire destroyed the roof of the church in 1968. The baroque tower crowning burned down completely and three quarters of the adjacent monastery building turned into a ruin. Fortunately, the contents of the church were spared.

The St. Paul’s Church was built in the Gothic style, but the furniture and works of art mainly date from the seventeenth century baroque. Inside, visitors can enjoy the beautiful interplay between light and space and the combination of austere Gothic and opulent baroque.

The Calvary Garden next to the church is a hidden gem. This sculpture garden from the first half of the eighteenth century contains 63 life-size statues and nine reliefs that depict, among other things, the resurrection of Jesus.

The church, monastery and Calvary have been protected as monuments since 1939. The garden and the 19th-century neoclassical gatehouse in Sint-Paulusstraat were given the same status in 2000.