Tongeren - Onze-Lieve-Vrouwbasiliek 
Towering over the Grote Markt of Tongeren is the 64m/210ft high basilica of Onze-Lieve- Vrouw which is considered one of the most impressive Gothic church buildings in Belgium. The present church was begun in 1240 on the remains of several previous buildings and was the site where the first stone church north of the Alps was erected in the fourth C. The choir, the transepts and the eastern part of the nave of the present church date from the 13th C., the apse was added a century later and the side aisles in the 15th C. Work was completed in 1541 with the tower, the top of which however has been damaged on several occasions.
The tower is a UNESCO site.
The tower is a UNESCO site.
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Must-see attractions nearby:
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Things to See
Church Concerts
Concerts are given in the basilica every year during the Flemish festival.
Onze-Lieve-Vrouwbasiliek Cloisters 
The Romanesque cloisters are situated unusually on the east side of the church and not as normal on the south, because the Roman town wall allowed for no extension. The cloisters are the remains of a monastic complex of the 12th and 13th C. and are notable for their simplicity and for the side chapels, the most beautiful of which can be seen at the entrance. Around the cloisters more than 60 tombstones have been let into the walls.
Onze-Lieve-Vrouwbasiliek Interior
The spacious and clearly articulated interior with its notable triforium is borne on tall round pillars. Tall windows from the Renaissance allow light to fall on to the choir in which the most valuable art treasures are the Gothic carved altar (first half 16th C.) from Antwerp with 23 detailed scenes from the life of Mary, two pascal candles of 1372 by the masters Jehan Josés of Dinant, and an eagle-lectern. The garlanded sculpture of Mary, the patron saint of the basilica, in the left side aisle, was carved in 1479 from walnut wood. From the right side aisle the visitor passes through a vestibule, in which hangs a huge 11th C. crucifix, into the cloisters.
Onze-Lieve-Vrouwbasiliek Treasury 
The treasury in the former chapter house is one of the richest in Belgium and possesses more than 100 works of art from the Merovingian epoque up to the 18th C. Outstanding is the famous 11th C. Head of Christ, a wooden sculpture of the greatest quality which seizes the moment of passing from life into death. Also notable is the Mosan metal work, including the reliquary of St Ursula made of silver-gilt with enamel inlay (about 1350). The oldest pieces include a Merovingian golden clasp of the sixth C. and an ivory diptych of St Paul which dates from about 500. The manuscripts include a specimen from the 10th/11th C. with ivory carvings on the cover and a ninth C. manuscript which was rebound in the 14th C. Every seven years (next in 2002) the crowning of the figure of Mary is the occasion for the most valuable relics to be carried in procession through the town.
