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Our Lady of the Dunes Church

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Places to see

Belgium

Flanders

West Flanders

Our Lady of the Dunes Church

70 people recommended this place

Recommended by 70 cyclists out of 78

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Location: West Flanders, Flanders, Belgium

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Tips

VISITFLANDERS

August 9, 2021

James Ensor (1860-1949) was one of the most important innovators of modern art in Belgium and made a significant contribution to the development of Surrealism and Dadaism. His work is closely linked to Oostende. Here he spent most of his life. And this is where he is buried.

You can meet the master of the whimsical in the graveyard of the small dune church dedicated to Our Lady. Ensor painted and memorialized the church, which originally dates from the 16th century.

Translated by Google •

Dirk Couck

January 1, 2022

If you pass here and the door of the church is open, be sure to enter. (See photos) It is a charming little church with a very authentic look. The woodwork inside and the different styles of stained glass windows are beautiful.

Translated by Google •

🇧🇪 Herwig Aertbeliën

February 4, 2023

The Dunes Church was built between 1350 and 1400. During the First World War, the Germans demolished the tower because it was too visible from the sea. Between 1929 and 1931, the church was restored and a new nave was added by city architect Gustaaf Vandamme. The cemetery has been protected as a landscape since 1975. Via a wooden bridge over the ramparts you reach the preserved wall and garden of the 16th-century presbytery. The garden wall now protects several vegetable gardens.

The cemetery is, among other things, the final resting place of painter Baron James Ensor. Ensor loved the Dune Church: he painted it several times and at the end of the 19th century he devoted himself to preserving the little church and the dunes. It is partly thanks to Ensor that we can enjoy a beautiful piece of nature here today.

The City wants to restore the surroundings of the Duinenkerkje to its original state as much as possible. That is why the old walls around the disappeared presbytery were deepened and the old cemetery wall was rebuilt. The wall of the presbytery garden will also be restored. Canals are being excavated to encourage wet, marshy nature development, which will increase biodiversity. The City wants to create a transition from dune to polder with a unique flora, such as rare orchids. The protected landscape is managed and maintained by grazing with sheep.

More info at oostende.be/onze-lieve-vrouw-ter-duinenkerk

Translated by Google •

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Elevation 10 m

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Saturday 4 October

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100 %

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Max wind speed: 46.0 km/h

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Location: West Flanders, Flanders, Belgium

Our Lady of the Dunes Church

1. Silt Casino Middelkerke – Raversijde met Atlantikwall loop from Nieuwpoort

2. Coastal Path Middelkerke – Authentic Fisherman's Cottage loop from Nieuwe Koerswijk

3. Framed View of the Sea – Casino Kursaal Ostend loop from Ostend

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