Keske Kruiseind | Gemert

Gemert. Four-sided keske at the Kruiseind.

The keske at the Kruiseind, on the corner Deel - Pandelaar, has four niches. Since time immemorial, these niches contain a crucifix with corpus and the statues of Saint John the Baptist (feast day June 24), Saint Anna (feast day July 26) and Saint George with the dragon (feast day April 23). When a roadside chapel was first erected here is not known. The present keske dates from 1911 and was rebuilt at his own expense by carpenter Johannes Pennings. The first stone was laid by Maria Christina Pennings on June 9 of that year. Two statues were already missing in the four niches by then. Pastor Dean Van Beek (1880-1915) then had a statue of St. Anna and a statue of Mary made in chamotte clay.

Whether a chapel at that location always had four niches is not certain. Judging from mentions such as 'omtrent den Cruijs' (ca. 1573), 'aent Cruijs aen den Fellenoort' (ca. 1589) and 'Den Blomer (Bloemerd) aent Cruijs' (1662), we do not know for sure because originally this was only a cross. In that context, is it a coincidence that when the church was rebuilt in 1911, only the niche with the cross could be seen from the village? The placing of a cross (statue) at places where roads intersected is attributed a magic-conjuring or Christian-sacralizing meaning.

In 1970, fears arose that the little chapel would disappear when the road was reconstructed. Apparently things did not go so well, for it was not until the early 1980s that the chapel was moved. Before that it stood in the middle of the intersection. It was then turned a quarter turn so that the crucifix no longer faces passers-by from Gemert.