Balusters from the Collegiate Church of Notre-Dame de Dinant

This pair of balusters comes from the former altar rail of the Collegiate Church of Notre-Dame de Dinant. Previously part of a private collection in Dinant, they were acquired in 2005 by the Pierre-François Tilmon Fund, managed by the King Baudouin Foundation. Each of the balusters bears the name of the person who participated financially in their creation, namely MONSR LALEMAND MARD BOURGEOIS DE DINAND and M. EAN IEHENNIEAUX BOURGOIS DE ROCHEFORT. The inscriptions testify to the Church’s practice of using “subscriptions” to finance the renewal of church furniture. Mard Lalemand was the Mayor of Dinant and Ean Iehennieaux was recorded in the Rochefort town registers, which links them directly to the region of Namur. Moreover, one of the balusters is dated 1701, the date on which the altar rail was made. The balusters are cast in brass, a great speciality of the Mosan Valley, and especially of Dinant and Bouvignes. Dinant above all acquired international renown for the improvements it brought to the techniques of making brass (an alloy of copper and zinc) and for its numerous dinandier (brass and copper) workshops. Moreover, the term Dinanderie, whose first recorded mention goes back to 1389, comes from the name of the town. Works that are both dated and bear inscriptions are rare, so these pieces are of great importance in understanding Dinant’s heritage. Further information about the Pierre François Tilmon Fund (in French)