Papignies / Papegem
INFORMATION
Font ID: 26019PAP
Object Type: Baptismal Font1
Font Date: n.d.
Font Century and Period/Style: 16th century (?) [basin only], Late Gothic / Renaissance [altered]
Workshop/Group/Artisan: Hainaut type
Church / Chapel Name: Eglise Saint-Sulpice
Font Location in Church: Inside
Church Patron Saint(s): St. Sulpice [aka Sulpitius]
Church Address: 15,, Rue des Brailles 5, 7861 Lessines, Belgium -- Tel: +32 68 55 28 90
Site Location: Hainaut, Wallonie / Wallonne, Belgium, Europe
Directions to Site: Located off the N521, N of Hwy E429, in the municipality of 3 km S of Lessines, NE of Ath
Ecclesiastic Region: Bisdom Doornik / Diocèse de Tournai
Additional Comments: altered (base is a later replacement) ***IMAGES RECEIVED as Papignies-Wannebeck from Pol -- TO BE LOADED AND ENTERED IN IMAGE SUBFORM***
Font Notes:
Click to view
Baptismal font and its cover listed and illustrated in BALaT KIK-IRPA [https://balat.kikirpa.be/object/10045566] [accessed 7 December 2025]: "fonts baptismaux [...] pierre [...] gothique [...] Date: 1491 - 1510 [...] hauteur: 89.5 cm [...] fût renouvelé".
A communication to BSI from Pol Herman (e-mail of 3 September 2025) informs: "Papignies [...] First mentioned in the beginning of the 12th century. The lords of Moncornet and the lords of Audenaerde had the lordship over territories of the village. Also many abbeys had possessions in the village : Cambron, Ghislenghien, Saint-Ghislain, Val-des- Ecoliers (Mons), Liessies (France), Saint-Martin at Tournai. The choir of the church is Romanesque. Largely rebuilt in 1642. The Hainaut-type, limestone, octagonal, renaissance font is said to date from 1491-1510 [cf. KIK-IRPA supra]. Only the basin is original. The basin is unusually wide and low. Personally, I think it must be dated later in the 16th century."
A communication to BSI from Pol Herman (e-mail of 3 September 2025) informs: "Papignies [...] First mentioned in the beginning of the 12th century. The lords of Moncornet and the lords of Audenaerde had the lordship over territories of the village. Also many abbeys had possessions in the village : Cambron, Ghislenghien, Saint-Ghislain, Val-des- Ecoliers (Mons), Liessies (France), Saint-Martin at Tournai. The choir of the church is Romanesque. Largely rebuilt in 1642. The Hainaut-type, limestone, octagonal, renaissance font is said to date from 1491-1510 [cf. KIK-IRPA supra]. Only the basin is original. The basin is unusually wide and low. Personally, I think it must be dated later in the 16th century."
Credit and Acknowledgements: We are grateful to Pol Herman for his help documenting this font
COORDINATES
UTM: 31U 557807 5615149
Latitude & Longitude (Decimal): 50.6853, 3.8183
Latitude & Longitude (DMS): 50° 41′ 7.08″ N, 3° 49′ 5.88″ E
MEDIUM AND MEASUREMENTS
Material: stone, limestone
Font Shape: octagonal (mounted)
Basin Interior Shape: round
Basin Exterior Shape: octagonal
Font Height (less Plinth): 89.5 cm*
Notes on Measurements: * [cf. FontNotes]
LID INFORMATION
Material: metal
Apparatus: no
Notes: octagonal pyramid with acorn finial
REFERENCES
- KIK-IRPA, BALaT KIK-IRPA, 2024. URL: https://balat.kikirpa.be/.