An exceptional silver ceremonial chain of the shooter's guild of Saint Sebastian in Rotselaar consisting of 12 plaques and a flower vase, dated 1608

H 55,5 - L 36 cm (total surface)

H 20 - L 18,5 cm (central shield)

A poem in honour of the headman and donor of the guild is written on the various links of the chain:

Lang leeft zulcken hoofdman tot Rotzelaer

De jonge confrerie dat loffelyck opperhoofd

Ons liefde tot dien schenker zal groeyen in alle daegen

Eenen krachtigen Poel schiet zoo milde fonteyn

Van De Poel schenkt heden tot Rotzelaer deze braeck

Eer men dan staeck vogel op zal stellen

Dat alle jaer ter kercke zyn gedagtenisse geschiede

Als Van De Poel haer dat geschenk doet

De kloeke jonkheyd maeckt plaisier

This poem of praise for the head and donor states that Van De Poel donated the chain to the guild in 1608 and that he will be commemorated annually before the start of the shooting competition in the mass that accompanied the shooting festival. The archives of the Saint Sebastian Guild of Rotselaar are kept in the State Archives in Leuven. The oldest documents date back to 1603. The archive mainly consists of pieces from the second half of the 17th century and the 18th century. Little is known about the beginnings of the guild (link). The necklace offered here dates from the early years of the confraternity, which is an exceptional enrichment for our knowledge of the shooting guild of Rotselaar.

The guild breach or the archer king's necklace was carried by the leader of the Rotselaar shooting guild, called the king. He obtained his title by shooting a wooden bird (the 'parrot') that was placed on the sails of a mill, a church tower or a stake. The outgoing king was the first to try to retain his title. In principle, each king added a silver shield to the chain, bearing his name, the date of his kingship and, if he had a noble title, his coat of arms. Since our chain is the beginning of this tradition, Van de Poel is the only name that appears on the chain (18th C. plaques, marked Leuven).

Since their appearance in the 14th century, the Dukes of Burgundy have shown great interest in the urban militias and granted them special privileges. They were even made honorary members of the guilds of the Netherlands. To distinguish the members of the guild, specific clothing was worn during official public appearances. It was necessary to highlight the 'king' of the guild and to do this, the honorary necklace, inspired by that of the Golden Fleece, was conceived as the grandest attribute. Guild necklaces are called "breuk", "braak", "brodgie", "Span", "Halsband" or "Juweel". The choice of silver was not trivial given the high cost of the material at the time; it thus served as safety treasure for the guild, the most representative piece of guild silverware. These shooting guilds originally emerged as an association of burgesses who were grouped together to defend the community. Later, as for exemple in Rotselaar at the beginning of the 17th C., when the military function of the guilds declined, the guild continued to exist, but shootings were only organized for recreation ("de kloeke jonkheyt maekt plaisier").

The chain is multiple marked and in particular the central relief medallion depicting the martyrdom of Saint Sebastian is quite unique. A similar medallion can be seen in the late (!) 17th C. guild chain of Mechelen, which was purchased by the King Baudouin Foundation in 1944 and entrusted to the Royal Museums of Art and History and exhibited in the Hallepoort in Brussels (link).