1. Grand Place (Grote Markt)
Antwerp’s Grand Place (Grote Markt) with its town hall and numerous guild houses is the heart of the old town. In the middle stands the ornate Brabo Fountain erected in 1887 by Jef Lambeaux and depicting the Roman soldier Silvius Brabo tossing the severed hand of the giant Antigonus into the Scheldt.
The Town Hall (or Stadhuis) dominates the plaza’s western side and was built by Cornelis Floris de Vriendt between 1561 and 1565. Inside, the rooms are hung with 19th-century paintings by H. Leys illustrating the history of Antwerp. Apart from the Stadhuis, most of the buildings bordering the Grote Markt are former guild houses (gildehuizen), which originally served as headquarters of the city’s 16th- and 17th-century guilds.
Among the most interesting guild houses on the north side are the Gildehuis der Kuipers (Coopers’ House No. 5), the Huis van de Schutters (Archer’s House No. 7), and the Huis van de Kruideniers (Grocers’ House No. 11).
Immediately behind the town hall, in the Gildekamersstraat, a former guild house has been turned into a Folk Museum devoted to the many traditional arts and crafts found in the Antwerp area, while nearby is the Ethnography Museum, which highlights non-European cultures.
Address: Grand Place, Central Antwerp
2. Cathedral of Our Lady
The Cathedral of Our Lady (Onze Lieve Vrouwkathedraal), is Belgium’s largest Gothic church. Work was started on the cathedral in 1352, continuing until 1521. Jacob van Thienen, Pieter Appelmans, Jan Tac, Everaert Spoorwater, Hermann and Dominic de Waghemakere, and Rombout Keldermans were among the architects and master-builders who contributed to its construction.
The church has suffered serious damage on a number of occasions over the years, depriving it of many of its most precious works of art. First came a fire in 1533, then despoliation at the hands of dissident iconoclasts in 1566, Calvinists in 1581, and French Republican troops in 1794 and 1800. Sadly, only a few of the lost treasures have since been recovered.
Restoration of the exterior was begun in the 19th century, and all the carved stonework on the outside of the building is therefore recent. Work on the interior began in 1965, starting with the nave where repairs were completed in 1983. The finest of the remaining works of art are displayed in the nave and aisles as well as in the cathedral treasury.
Address: Groenplaats 21 / Handschoenmarkt, Central Antwerp
