Antwerp Sights

  1. 't Bootje

    Although Zurenborg has the city's most dense concentration of Art Nouveau architecture, another fine example can be seen in 't Zuid and is just a short walk from the Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten. 't Bootje has a little ship-shaped balcony that is part of a 1901 townhouse called De Vijf Continenten (The Five Continents).

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  2. Brabo Fountain

    The voluptuous, baroque Brabo Fountain rises from a rough pile of rocks in the centre of the Grote Markt. Crafted in 1887 by Jef Lambeaux (who lived at Grote Markt 44), it depicts the legend of Antwerp's name.

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  3. Centraal Station

    One of the city's premier landmarks is the extraordinary Centraal Station, designed by Louis Delacenserie at the start of the 20th century in a harmonious blend of styles. Steps lead from the main hall with its enormous dome up to the glass-covered train platforms above. The station and adjoining Koningin Astridplein have been undergoing massive works for years to accommodate the Eurostar and Thalys fast trains, thus directly linking the city to London and the rest of Europe. .

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  4. Cogels-Osylei

    This area, about 2km southeast of Centraal Station, is famed for the eclectic architecture found in a handful of streets. The showcase is Cogels-Osylei, a bazaar of all possible house styles. Here the city's affluent citizens went wild a century ago, creating competing and highly contrasting façades ranging in style from Art Nouveau and Flemish baroque to neoclassical and neo-Renaissance. Roofs and towers spiked with onion tops or witches' hats, wrought-iron balconies, bay windows, slate tiles, stained glass and mosaics…you name it, this street's got it.

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  5. De Morgenster

    An exquisite Art Nouveau example along Cogels-Osylei is the De Morgenster built in 1904.

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  6. De Vier Seizoenen

    Mosaics are at their best at De Vier Seizoenen, designed in 1899 by the architect Bascourt.

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  7. Euterpia

    The Euterpia, from 1906, follows Greek neoclassical lines - the door handle even resembles an Olympic torch.

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  8. Grote Markt

    As in every great Flemish city, life in Antwerp radiates out from the Grote Markt, a vast, pedestrianised, triangular market square presided over by the impressive Renaissance-style stadhuis.

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  9. Help U Zelve

    Help U Zelve is arguably the city's most beautiful and harmonious Art Nouveau façade. Built in 1901 by architects Van Asperen and Van Averbeke, it features mosaics and strongly geometric wrought-iron work. It's now used as a Rudolph Steiner school.

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  10. Huize Zonnebloem

    An exquisite Art Nouveau example along Cogels-Osylei is the Huize Zonnebloem, built by Jules Hofman in 1900.

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  12. Justitiepaleis

    The city's new Justitiepaleis, reminiscent of Sydney's Opera House, will blow away any preconceptions that architecture in Antwerp is all old hat. The work of renowned British architect Richard Rogers, the man behind London's Lloyd's building and Paris' Pompidou Centre, its gleaming sails can easily be seen rising at the end of Amerikalei, down the southern end of 't Zuid. This area has largely been left begging in recent decades, but this flashy new addition has already sparked a real-estate boom.

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  13. Les Mouettes

    Art Nouveau swirls and mosaic façades can be found at Les Mouettes, built in 1905.

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  14. Quinten Matsys

    An exquisite Art Nouveau example along Cogels-Osylei is the Quinten Matsys built in 1904.

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  15. Stadhuis

    Life in Antwerp radiates out from the Grote Markt, a vast, triangular market square and it's presided over by the impressive Renaissance-style Stadhuis. Designed by Cornelius Floris De Vriendt and completed in 1565, the stadhuis' palatial façade is a blend of Flemish and Italian styles, an innovative departure from the standard Gothic architecture prevalent at the time of construction. The commanding gable is topped by a fine gilded eagle and flanked by statues representing wisdom and justice.

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  16. Twaalf Duivels

    The Twaalf Duivels , built in 1896 by Jules Hofman, has a timber façade that gives way to 12 wooden devils that leer at passers-by.

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  17. Witte Paleizen

    The area's focal point is the small roundabout on Cogels-Osylei, which is flanked by the Witte Paleizen, grand façades resembling chateaux in France's Loire Valley.

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