The origins
How long has a church stood on this site? We do not know exactly. A church dedicated to Saint Mary is recorded at Dinant as early as 870, but its origins may be older.
In the 10th century it became a collegiate church served by a chapter of canons. Then, by the end of the 11th century at the latest, it received the relics of Saint Perpetuus, a former bishop of Maastricht who was especially venerated in Dinant. The church henceforth bore the names Saint Mary and Saint Perpetuus.
As the town prospered, a large Romanesque church was built in the 12th century. One spectacular witness still survives: the great Romanesque portal preserved in the north wall of the collegiate church.