Kontich / Condacum

Noted and illustrated in the Jean-Claude Ghislain's Les fragments de fonts baptismaux romans tournaisiens de Kontich et de Hove (1988). The entry for the nearby church in Hove nr. Antwerp in the Hove.be site [https://www.hove.be/romaanse-doopvont-sint-laurentiuskerk] [accessed 18 October 2023] informs that the fragment of the medieval font originally from Kontich St. Martin's demolished church is similar to the medieval font discovered in Hove in 1968 [cf. BSI entry for Hove nr. Antwerp]. Noted and illustrated in Frank Hellemans en Guido Pede, with photographs from Kring voor Heemkunde, Herwerkte en uitgebreide versie van een artikel uit het Informatieblad van de gemeente Kontich, september 2001, as a fragment of a 12th-century Tournai font now in the MuseumKontich [https://www.museumkontich.be/Sprokkels/Romaanse doopvont.htm] [accessed 19 October 2023]; the fragment was discovered built into the foundations of 'De Oude Eendracht' pub on Rubenstraat when it was being demolished. The surviving fragment is a corner of the square basin of a table-top type Tournai-type font; its decoration includes part of a passant-gardant lion and a part of a dragon, only part of the mane and the curved tail of the latter showin. The present font in this church is listed in BALaT KIK-IRPA [https://balat.kikirpa.be/object/63656] [accessed 19 October 2023]; modern, of 1873 [cf. ImagesArea]. Two more entries in BALaT-KIK IRPA [https://balat.kikirpa.be/object/63744] and [https://balat.kikirpa.be/object/63746] [accessed 19 October 2023] lists and llustrates two late-16th century stone holy-water stoups in this church. The Museum entry above mentions a baptismal well [near the Nachtegaalwijk], that is said to have been used for baptisms in early times; its water was said to have curative powers. A communication to BSI from Pol Herman (e-mail of 5 November 2023) provides backgound information on the churches of Kontich and the origins and happenings of the font: "The village of Kontich had two churches (Saint-Martin and Our Lady), barely a stone's throw from each other, because its territory fell under two jurisdictions : the land of Rijen (duc of Brabant) and the land of Mechelen (also called land of Arkel, noble family of the Berthouts). The oldest church, which has since disappeared, was Saint-Martinus. It was located on the current St. Martin's Square with an extensive cemetery surrounding it. Originally, it was a simple church largely built of wood and covered with a thatched roof. The building of a Romanesque stone church (façade ?) was later started, but never finished. Parts of the wooden building were never replaced, and the roof was never tiled. According to tradition, Saint Reinildis came from Kontich. Although this has been refuted by historical sources, it is certain that this niece of Pepijn van Landen owned land here, which she donated to the abbey of Lobbes in Hainaut around the 7th century. However, due to the raids of the Vikings, the abbey lost control over its property. In the year 1088 Lobbes was able to realize the first partial recovery of the Kontich parish. Nicolas Claret, the bishop of Cambrai reconfirmed in 1149 that the church of Kontich was the property of Lobbes. This meant that they could appoint the pastor and collect the tithes through him. Probably at that time, a Tournai-type baptismal font was donated. A second, more complete restitution followed in 1249. The church burned down completely in the years 1538-1556. Was it caught in the flames during the great fire that swept through the village on April 23, 1538? Was it set on fire in 1542 during Maarten van Rossem's disastrous passage through our region? The archives tell us nothing about the exact date and cause of the fire. And apparently there was no haste with the reconstruction of the church. After the iconoclastic fury of 1566, all plans to restore the St. Martin's Church were definitively abandoned. The name of the patron saint and the worship were transferred from the oldest church to the more recent church of Our Lady. Around the end of the 17th century, the ruins of the old church were demolished. The debris (including fragments of a baptismal font) were recycled and used for the construction of a farm on the same location (the later pub 'Oude Eendracht', the local seat of the mediaeval crossbow guild). Hardly any remains of the church were found later. What is certain is that the church and cemetery were located outside the present-day village centre. A small chapel dedicated to Saint-Martin was erected in the vicinity of the former ruins as compensation, but that in turn disappeared in 1863. The fragment of the Romanesque baptismal font was discovered when the pub was demolished in 1979. It is now at the local museum in Kontich." A communication to BSI from Pol Herman (e-mail of 5 November 2023) added information about a holy well, "Sint-Martinusput", in Kontich: "Said to be the location where people were baptized during the Christianisation of the area. According to the legend, this source probably dates back to pagan times. However, the existence of this well was only first mentioned in 1648. At the end of the nineteenth century, the baptismal well was somewhat forgotten by the population. It was rediscovered in 1948 by the local priests. But this rediscovery is relative, because the local population always knew that place, even if only as a watering place for cattle. The children went there to catch fatheads, salamanders and sticklebacks."