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The ancient city of Antwerp is the second city in the country after Brussels, the capital of Belgium, with many beautiful sights and a unique atmosphere. Tourists from all over the world come here to feel all the charm of the city, walk along the ancient streets, return to the past and find themselves in ancient Europe. It was this city that inspired for many years the famous painter, the founder of the Baroque, Peter Paul Rubens. You can feel the spirit of the creator in almost all corners of the Belgian town, most of the sights are associated with the creative activity of the artist, since it was here that he spent most of his life. The sights of Antwerp convey the atmosphere of ancient Europe. Don't know what to see in Antwerp? Especially for you, we have made an overview of the most interesting places in this ancient city.
Sights of Antwerp, a city in Belgium
When visiting the sights of Belgium, you cannot pass by Antwerp. If you decide to come to the city by train, then you will immediately come across one of the main architectural monuments – the Central Railway Station. It is considered one of the most beautiful and majestic train stations in the world. Many even gave it the appropriate name – “railroad cathedral”. Made in the eclectic style, the station is complemented by a seventy-five-meter-high dome and 8 towers. The interior is stunning, with about twenty types of marble and other materials used for decoration. The design is absolutely in no way inferior to the royal premises. Here you can relax in a cafe, walk through the diamond gallery, where there are about thirty jewelry stores. You can get detailed information if you find a photo on the Internet describing the sights of Antwerp.
Antwerp Central Station. Belgium Paul HermansAll guides in Antwerp recommend city guests not to disregard this attraction. Not far from the railway station is one of the oldest zoos in Europe. The Antwerp Zoo was created back in 1843, at the moment it has about seven hundred and seventy all kinds of animals. Here you can communicate with various representatives of the animal world, visit a planetarium, pools with cute penguins and otters, get on with a show of sea lions, see a huge aquarium and more. Zoo workers strive to create all the necessary conditions for the animals to feel comfortable. At the main entrance, a map of the zoo and animal feeding hours are required. On the territory there are shopping centers and cafes where you can relax and have a meal with the whole family.
The main entrance to the Antwerp Zoo on Queen Astrid Square ScaraMcDuck
Official website: https://www.zooantwerpen.be/en/
Famous places in the city center
Excursions in Antwerp are always organized with a visit to this attraction of Antwerp – Sten Castle. This is the oldest building in the city, founded in 1200. His original role was to protect the inhabitants from the Vikings and to secure the port. During its existence, Sten Castle was also the seat of city government, a prison, an archaeological museum, and at the moment the National Museum of Navigation is located there. The construction has a unique and interesting history, which everyone should be imbued with. In front of Sten Castle you can see a monument to Long Wapper, a fairy-tale character. He is known for the fact that he could change his height at any time. He could easily become a small child or a huge giant, covering the distance between cities with a single jump.
Entrance to the medieval Steen Castle in Antwerp Jean-Pol GRANDMONT
Three hundred meters from Steen Castle is the Grote Markt, where several architectural monuments are located at once – the town hall and the impressive Brabo fountain.
The Antwerp Town Hall stands on the Grote Markt in Aetwerp Klaus with K
Here, on the town hall, guild houses, founded in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, found their place. The main attraction of Antwerp in Belgium was built thanks to Cornelis Floris back in 1565. The height of the building is seventy-six meters, it consists of four floors. The architectural monument perfectly combines both elements of the Gothic style and the delightful Renaissance. The city hall houses a sculpture of Our Lady and some others of particular importance for the city of statues.
Bravo Fountain on the Grote Markt in Antwerp G.Lanting Be sure to watch this beautiful video about Antwerp!
What to see in Antwerp in 1 day
In the very center of the Grote Markt, there is a delightful Brabo Fountain. The fountain is named after the famous hero, with whom the very name of the city is associated. As the legend goes, a greedy and evil giant once lived on the way from Cologne to Paris. Anyone who wanted to walk this path alive and well had to pay. Otherwise, the giant deprived the hands of poor travelers. The Roman Brabo bravely fought the giant and defeated him by cutting off his hand and throwing it into the beautiful Scheldt River. It is believed that the city itself was founded on this place with a name that means “throw a hand” in translation. The peculiarity of the fountain is that it does not have a bowl where water would flow. Therefore, it descends directly under the stones that are the foundation for the Brabo sculpture.
Cathedral of Our Lady on Grote Mark Square tAd Meskens
If you are going to get around the sights of Antwerp in one day, then by all means include in their list the Cathedral of Our Lady, located near the Grote Markt. The magnificent tower towering above the cathedral building is visible from all points of the city. Its height is one hundred twenty-three meters. The construction of the cathedral was carried out from the fourteenth to the sixteenth century, during which time about ten architects managed to work on it. The building is in the Brabant Gothic style. Today, the Cathedral of Our Lady also acts as a museum, where you can get acquainted with the outstanding works of the unique artist Peter Paul Rubens.
Official website: http://www.dekathedraal.be /
Plantin Moretus Museum in Antwerp Ad Meskens
You should definitely go to the unique Plantin-Moretus Museum to get acquainted with the old library, printing presses from 1600. The library has about thirty thousand books. It will be especially interesting for historians to visit this place in order to learn as much as possible about the life of old Antwerp. It also invites you to look at many works by the painter Rubens.
Official website: https://www.museumplantinmoretus
aan museum de Stroom and Zinneke Antwerp Museum Viewpoint
Antwerp – City of Museums
One of the modern sights of interest in Antwerp, a city in Belgium, is the museum “an de Strom”, open to visitors only in the year 2111. The building was built from Indian red sandstone of various shades. On the walls of the building you can see images of a hand, which again reminds of the legend of the appearance of the city. The museum is an art and at the same time a museum of the shipping company. Here you can see various finds of archaeologists, stone crafts, jewelry, unique works from around the world.
Official website: https://www.mas.be/en
Royal Museum of Fine Arts on Leopold Square Astro vls
The Royal Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1890, is located on the old Leopold Square, built in 1890. The museum reflects the development of art in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, when the city was the cultural center of Europe.
Official website: http://www.kmska.be/en/
Garden in front of the house of the artist Pedro Pablo Rubens in Antwerp Alonsolej
And finally, one cannot ignore the Rubens House, a museum that reflects the versatility and depth of the artist known throughout the city and beyond. Here are the art collections of the creator, an incomplete reproduction of the painter's interiors. Unfortunately, there are few original items from the Rubens collections in the museum. It is not possible to recreate the original paintings by Rubens, since they were located far outside of Belgium. Many are already in other famous museums, for example:
- in New York, USA – the Metropolitan Museum of Art; in Madrid, Spain – Prado; in Paris, France – the Louvre; in St. Petersburg, Russia – the Hermitage; in Munich, Germany – Alte Pinakothek.
Painting by artist Pedro Pablo Rubens Lisby
Official website: https://www.rubenshuis.be/en
< p> If you want to get more information, then on Wikipedia the sights of Antwerp are presented in full, you can read about them and see photos. Armed with knowledge about the history of the city and its main interesting places, you can safely go there to enjoy its originality and unique atmosphere live. Read also about the sights of Ghent and be inspired to travel further in Belgium.