The St. Bavo Church in Haarlem

De grote of st. Bavokerk is the Gothic church of St. Bawo (Bawona), patron of falconers, a saint Catholic and Orthodox church. The church was built on the site of a Romanesque temple, which was destroyed by fire in 1370. The construction lasted about 150 years - the building got its present shape in 1520. The church has about 400 tombstones - rests here, among others Frans Hals (1582 / 83-1666), a Dutch painter, one of the greatest European portraitists.

An architectural curiosity is the church belfry. Originally it was a stone structure, but the pillars supporting it could not withstand the load. The stone was replaced with lead-coated wood. De grote of st. Bavokerk has the world's heaviest clock installed in the tower - the mechanism weighs nearly 5 tons.

The patron of the church, St. Bawo (589-654) was reportedly accused of stealing a white falcon. He was sentenced to hang. A moment before the verdict was executed, the white falcon landed on the gallows. Bawo read it as a sign from God. He became a patron of Haarlem in 1268, when he was to appear in the sky with a sword and falcon and thus break the siege of the city.