Bekegem

Baptismal font listed and illustrated in BALaT KIK-IRPA [https://balat.kikirpa.be/object/35011] [accessed 23 February 2026]: "doopvont [...] arduin [...] Date: 1697 - 1697 [...] hoogte: 200 cm" [NB: 2 m. tall? an error?].
A communication to BSI from Pol Herman (e-mail of 28 January 2026) informs: "Because the church formed a unit with the most important farm of the village, it started probably as an “eigenkirche” of the local lord. Bekegem was first mentioned in 1107, as Bichengem. The Bishop of Tournai-Noyon granted the parish's patronage rights to the Abbey of Saint-Amand in Saint-Amand-les-Eaux. This was likely nothing more than confirmation of a situation that had existed since the 8th century. From 1227 onward, the patronage rights were held by the Abbey of Saint-Bertinus in Saint-Omer. Some sections of the walls are said to date from 1280-1291, although the first Romanesque stone church could have been older. The church was enlarged between 1235 and 1300. A big tower was added outside the church building, that made the small church look like a chapel (shown on the map of Pourbus). Probably financed by the chapter of Saint Donatius at Bruges. During the religious unrest of the 16th century, Bekegem suffered greatly from both Spanish troops and protestant Geuzen. The 13th-century church building was considerable damaged. From 1568 onward, the area was unsafe, and in 1581, there was an attack by Malcontents. By 1584, the village was almost completely depopulated, and only after 1604 (the fall of Ostend) did peace return. The bishop closed the church in 1628 because it was dilapidated and ruined. The tower was demolished. The ruined church was rebuilt in 1636 in the late Gothic style: a single-nave cruciform church described as "short and narrow, yet spacious enough for the population, and in the form of a cross”. Apparently, pilgrimages to Saint Lawrence took place, to whom the south altar was dedicated in 1652.
From 1666 to 1684, the village was ravaged by plundering troops during the Franco-Spanish War. The church was also set on fire and damaged.
The church had become unusable by 1775 and was restored. In 1830, Bekegem became an independent parish, separated from that of Zerkegem.
The church was renovated in 1857. Baptismal records start in 1675. Limestone, octagonal, Hainaut-type font. Inscription on the basin : DONO DNI WALTERY DE CLERCQ 1697 -- The design of the basin is very archaic for a late 17th c. font. Maybe the inscription was added on an older font ?
The base and column are said to be not original (renewed). https://balat.kikirpa.be/object/35011".