WILLEMSSENS, Lodewijk

Although almost the entire interior of the St Lambert’s Church was lost during the devastation in 1944, a number of images of the 17th century choir stalls have been preserved. These choir stalls were manufactured from 1690-1699 and originated from the Sint-Bernardus abbey in Hemiksem. It concerns 19 statues representing holy or blessed Cistercians, as well as 12 female figures personifying the virtues. The sculptures were made by artists such as Artus Quellinus II, Lodewijk Willemssens and Hendrick Frans Verbrugghen.

This detail shows the figure of St Benedict from the choir stalls in St Lambert’s Church in Wouw.

Sculptured church furniture accounted for the largest part of Willemssens’s production,

Juan Domingo de Zuniga y Fonseca (1640-1716) was a Spanish military and statesman, Count of Monterrey and Fuentes, Viceroy of Catalonia. Appointed governor of the Spanish Netherlands from 1670 to 1675, he was in charge of the construction of the Monterey Fort to strengthen the defense of Brussels.

The allegorical personifications of Catholic doctrine, decorating the pulpit of the Church of St James in Antwerp are good examples of Willemssens’s individual style.

This side altar is located in the Chapel of St John the Baptist in the St James Church in Antwerp.