Sights of Antwerp
Grote Markt
This lopsided market 'square' (more of a truncated triangle), reserved for pedestrians and bordered by some marvellous Renaissance-style buildings, is not only the social heart of the old city centre but of Antwerp itself.
Cathedral of Our Lady
The most beautiful monument is without a doubt the Gothic Cathedral of Our Lady housing two masterpieces, the "Raising of the Cross" and the "Descent from the Cross", by Peter Paul Rubens, the local celebrity. His wonderful Flemish Renaissance house linked by an elegant Italian portico to the Italian Renaissance atelier can be visited. More of his paintings are in the museum together with the works of his pupil Anthony van Dyck , as well as Teniers, Breughel, Jordaens, Matsys, Permeke, Ensor and many more.
Rubenshuis
On the Wapper, a square branching off the Meir to the south, is one of Antwerp's main tourist attractions, Rubenshuis, the former home and studio of the famed Belgian artist formerly known as Pieter Paul Rubens.
The Meir
This is Antwerp's main promenade, a pedestrian-only shopping zone unrolled from the streets of the old centre to just shy of the grand, dome-roofed bulk of Centraal Station.
Royal Museum of Fine Arts
Antwerp has a wealth of museums and galleries that collectively form a historic panorama of the changing moods of this city. In the district of Het Zuid (usually shortened to 't Zuid and meaning 'the south') is Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten (Royal Museum of Fine Arts). The awesome collection of paintings affixed to the walls of this striking neoclassical building dates from the 14th century right up to contemporary times. It includes masterworks from the 15th-century Flemish likes of Jan Van Eyck and Rogier Van der Weyden, from 17th-century exponents of baroque like Rubens and Antoon Van Dyck, and from more recent creative types like James Ensor, Constant Permeke and surrealist René Magritte.
This lopsided market 'square' (more of a truncated triangle), reserved for pedestrians and bordered by some marvellous Renaissance-style buildings, is not only the social heart of the old city centre but of Antwerp itself.
Cathedral of Our Lady
The most beautiful monument is without a doubt the Gothic Cathedral of Our Lady housing two masterpieces, the "Raising of the Cross" and the "Descent from the Cross", by Peter Paul Rubens, the local celebrity. His wonderful Flemish Renaissance house linked by an elegant Italian portico to the Italian Renaissance atelier can be visited. More of his paintings are in the museum together with the works of his pupil Anthony van Dyck , as well as Teniers, Breughel, Jordaens, Matsys, Permeke, Ensor and many more.
Rubenshuis
On the Wapper, a square branching off the Meir to the south, is one of Antwerp's main tourist attractions, Rubenshuis, the former home and studio of the famed Belgian artist formerly known as Pieter Paul Rubens.
The Meir
This is Antwerp's main promenade, a pedestrian-only shopping zone unrolled from the streets of the old centre to just shy of the grand, dome-roofed bulk of Centraal Station.
Royal Museum of Fine Arts
Antwerp has a wealth of museums and galleries that collectively form a historic panorama of the changing moods of this city. In the district of Het Zuid (usually shortened to 't Zuid and meaning 'the south') is Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten (Royal Museum of Fine Arts). The awesome collection of paintings affixed to the walls of this striking neoclassical building dates from the 14th century right up to contemporary times. It includes masterworks from the 15th-century Flemish likes of Jan Van Eyck and Rogier Van der Weyden, from 17th-century exponents of baroque like Rubens and Antoon Van Dyck, and from more recent creative types like James Ensor, Constant Permeke and surrealist René Magritte.