St John the Baptist, Waalwijk

The church of St John the Baptist can be seen from the wide surrounds of Waalwijk. With its nineteen copper domes and tall, slender bell tower, the Roman Catholic church dominates the skyline of this Brabant town. In 1922 the architect Hendrik Willem Valk was commissioned to design the new church. Inspired by architecture he'd seen during his travels around the Middle East, he designed a church with distinctly early Christian and Byzantine features. Construction started in 1923, and two years later, in 1925, the new church opened its doors. What a tremendous accomplishment!