Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal Antwerpen(Cathedral Of Our Lady. 성모마리아 대성당). 안트웨르펜(Antwerpen)

Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal Antwerpen

(Cathedral Of Our Lady. 성모마리아 대성당).

안트웨르펜(Antwerpen). 벨기에(Belgium)

Stained-glass window with the archdukes Albert and Isabella in adoration of the cross

Cornelis Cussers / Jan Baptist van der Veken

In this stained-glass window in the north wall of the transept, made in 1616 by Cornelis Cussers(? - ca 1617) after a design by Jan Baptist van der Veken, Albert (right) and Isabella are portrayed while they kneel in prayer before the crucified Christ. Both are accompanied by their patron saints, respectively bishop Albert the Great (with miter) and Elisabeth of Thüringen (with crown). Behind the four figures is a strikingly large round arch offering a view of a church, which may depict the basilica of Scherpenheuvel, which was zealously being constructed on the orders of Albert and Isabella when this stained-glass window first saw the light of day. That many Antwerp natives believed that Our Lady of Scherpenheuvel had saved their city from a plague epidemic in 1603 may have been an additional reason for referring to the basilica.

St Joseph retable

Jean-Baptist de Boeck / Jean-Baptist van Wint / Louis Hendrix

In the period between 1870 and 1873, the entire St Joseph chapel was decorated in the neogothic style. And the beautiful St Joseph retable (centerpiece: 245 x 272 cm, side panels: 245 x 136 cm) also dates from this time. The retable stands proudly on a painted stone altar table (132.5 x 292 x 137.5 cm) that rests on four small columns in front and behind on a slab decorated with three coats of arms. The centerpiece consists of finely carved woodwork by Jean-Baptist de Boeck (1826-1902) and Jean-Baptist van Wint (ca 1835-1906). With care and craftsmanship, they have portrayed St Joseph - who carries the Christ child on his arm - and seven episodes from his life. To the left of the central St Joseph sculpture, from top to bottom, are the marriage of Joseph and Mary, the birth of Christ, and the presentation of Jesus in the temple; to the right, the flight into Egypt, Jesus found in the temple of Jerusalem, and the Holy Family in Nazareth. The scene in the center below refers to the death of Joseph.
The paintings on the side panels of the retable are by the hand of Louis Hendrix (1827-1888). At the upper left, a kneeling pope Pius IX and his patron saint, Peter, are represented; below, saints Bernard of Siena, Thomas Aquinus, John of Chrysostome, Augustine and Jerome. At the upper right, a kneeling king Charles II and the sainted bishop Maternus are visible; below, saints Birgitta of Sweden, Theresa, Ignatius of Loyola, Frances of Sales, Vincent de Paul and Alphonse.

Painting ‘The assumption of the Virgin (성모승천)’

Peter Paul Rubens (루벤스)

It is evident that the imposing oil painting (490 x 325 cm), which has adorned the high altar for nearly four hundred years, is dedicated to the patroness of the Cathedral. That it depicts the assumption of the Virgin is also self-evident. Although the theme derives from church tradition and is not based on the Bible itself, it was nevertheless especially popular when Rubens made this altarpiece in 1625-1626.
Borne up by a cloud of playful cherubs, light as a feather, with fluttering hair and gown, eyes expectantly turned toward heaven, Mary rises upward from her stone tomb. To the left, two large angels fly in to crown her with a garland of roses. Below, near the abandoned grave, are the twelve apostles and the three women who according to legend were present at Mary’s death.

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