I took this photograph inside Saint-Hadelin church, Celles.
This particular Romanesque church was consecrated in 1047 by Bishop Wazon of Liège ...
The place was so cold and silent, you could almost feel the presence of past parishioners. Then Lut discovered a door to the right of this area I photographed and she said 'Di let's have a look, this probably leads to the crypt'.
Call me a chicken if you like but heading down a stone staircase to the crypt in an ancient empty church isn't really my thing. And I can be quite stubborn once I've made a decision about what I won't do.
Lut disappeared on her own. I wandered around the church.
Suddenly there was a sound, not unlike a heavy coffin lid being lifted (or a squeaky wooden door being pushed for those less imaginative). I heard myself laugh nervously and wondered how brave I would be if she ran out, pursued by the ghosts of angry Templar Knights ...
Eventually she emerged on the other side of the building, the stone tunnel had taken her under the church, leaving her more convinced that I should come take a look.
Research this morning makes me happy I didn't ...
Below the tower remains a 9th century crypt. In this crypt the relics of Saint Hadelinus are kept in a niche. A second crypt can be found underneath the choir.
On a brighter note, the choir stalls date from the 13th century, making them the oldest of their kind in Belgium.
I left New Zealand mid-2003, bound for Istanbul and a new lif. After two years, a Belgian guy lured me into his world, deep in the heart of Europe. For a long time I was an in-process immigrant. One day we married. These days it's about photography, a little red wine and wandering ... and so the journey goes.
Scaredy pants!
ReplyDeleteNo, it was a risk management situation. It was a really old church ... really really old!
ReplyDeleteAnd there live Hobbitses over the hill, right? :P
ReplyDeleteThose New Zeas, always believing in ghost stories.
whenever i see something this historic my attention will drift at some point to the most ironic thing on me (like an ipod with some obnoxious song playing in shuffle)
ReplyDeletebeautiful shot. and since i'm commenting and wasn't actually there i'm going to claim that i wouldn't have been scared as far as you know ;-)
Manic, when you're over 40, you don't want to set foot in a crypt one moment before necessary, though crypts are not nearly so fearsome as dungeons and torture chambers. Those are the adventures I pass on.
ReplyDeleteThanks furiousball, but I guess you would be fine if you were wearing the ninja mask?
ReplyDeleteWell said, v-grrrl.