Inside view of the collegiate church of St. Michael and St. Gudula

This 1854 painting shows the interior of the current Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula in Brussels. The artist painted the southern part of the ambulatory and chapel of Our Lady of Deliverance, with stained glass windows by Theodoor van Thulden (1606-1669) in the center of the painting.

The Brussels City Museum has preserved a number of painted sketches and drawings of the interior of the Cathedral of Saint Michael and Saint Gudula by the hand of this artist, a specialist in this pictorial genre.

Why did we include this work in our collections?
• There is a strong interest in complementing the series of cathedral interiors with an accomplished work that takes a different artistic approach. This was as yet not present in the current collections.
• The importance of Van Moer for the City of Brussels, which is the reference owner of this artist’s works. Currently, several hundred pieces by him are already held within the Archives and the Brussels City Museum.
• For the sake of the beautifully displayed stained glass windows. The museum has a number of stained glass windows from the cathedral, but not the ones we see in the painting. Thanks to this artwork, it is possible to place them in context.

Would you like to know more about this acquisition? You can find more details about the work itself in the inventory sheet here available.