Église St-Nicolas, Brussels: Maria Pacis Altar

@Linerberry: Cheers, LB! She almost looks like a Roman goddess, no?

@António Pires: We'll see more 'sound' churches, I think you will like the one or other. St Nicholas with its crooked design has its charm, though.

@Phil David Alexander Morris: This is just a small one. Get ready for a Renaissance / Baroque one, and two Gothic treasure troves, each with fabulous stained glass windows. :-)

@Japanalia: No, no, this is one of the two additional altars in the side aisles. A few days ago we were looking at the high altar. There is even a third one dedicated to Nicholas himself.

@MARIANA: Usually this is so, but often there are big local differences. In some churches (Northern Italy!) it's completely forbidden, in others you must not use a tripod. This has less religious but economical reasons, as you are 'encouraged' to buy postcards or books. In some churches using a tripod is considered 'professional' and you have to pay a steep fee.
In the smaller churches this usually isn't an issue. As long as you don't disturb anybody, taking photos is okay. If there are people lost in prayer, I usually avoid taking photos, though. Flash is a no-no unless you are alone in the church.

@Philip: Cheers, Philip!

@Ted: Come on, dare it! :-D

@Michael: Actually I prefer a populated church. Everything else makes me think of a museum, but in fact these are places of a living faith. At least they should be.

@Steven: Though it is only a secondary altar, a lot of small parish churches would be proud to have such a specimen!

@Christine Walsh: I was thinking this, too, but it would be very strange in a church, especially in an altar.