Impressive is how high the Sint-Catharinakerk of Aalsum stands. Dedicated to Saint Catharina of Alexandria, it sits on a remaining high piece of the old village terp. The terp once covered four hectares, but a large part was dug away around 1880.
The nave is the oldest part, dating from the 12th century. The windows are not original: they date from 1829, and no trace of the earlier ones remains. If you look closely, you’ll see the choir is narrower than the nave. It was added a century later, and is more richly decorated, especially with round-arch friezes. Even narrower is the semi-circular apse, which originally had large round-arched windows.
In 1843 the west front was renewed, and that’s when the neoclassical wooden façade tower was added. Step inside and you’ll immediately notice the beautiful wooden barrel vault. It replaced the stone vaults, traces of which can still be recognised. The organ on the west gallery dates from 1906.
Notable: during WWII, ammunition was regularly dropped near the church without the nearby stationed Germans noticing. And in 2009, Aalsum made national news when a 450 kg gravestone on the churchyard shifted by itself, multiple times.
