Aldringen

The column, probably Roman and dating from the 2nd century, which serves as a pedestal for the baptismal font in the tower of the church in Aldringen, is probably the oldest piece of equipment in churches and chapels in East Belgium. The decorated stone was found in 1963 during excavation work in the choir and carries a baptismal font with lid of older date. The interpretation of experts is that the stone, first mentioned in 1131 in a register of Stavelot Abbey, was originally a Romanesque building. The tower bears the date 1699, and the portal and sacristy date from the 19th and early 20th centuries. The windowless choir has a main altar and two side altars. These are richly decorated Baroque works from the early 18th century. In the center is a Flemish-Walloon painting of the Crucifixion, on the side is St. Hubert kneeling before the stag and the Coronation of Mary. Among the numerous sculptures, a late Gothic group of “St. Anna Selbdritt” stands out. “Anna Selbdritt”, which dates from the second half of the 16th century, represents a biblical family sequence, which can also be seen in the parish church of Wirtzfeld. In the choir room there is also a neo-Gothic relief by Kaspar Weiss showing other family scenes from the lives of Mary and Joseph.

Source: Churches and chapels in East Belgium by Freddy Derwahl and Johannes Weber