The Secrets of Antwerp

You tilt your head back and the tower just keeps going — 123 metres of Gothic ambition rising above the rooftops of Antwerp. Construction began in 1352 and took 169 years to complete. At the time, it was the tallest building in the Low Countries.

Inside, the cathedral holds four masterpieces by Peter Paul Rubens, including the dramatic Raising of the Cross and Descent from the Cross. Napoleon himself was so impressed that he tried to ship them back to Paris.

You step onto the triangular Grote Markt and the guild houses rise around you like a gilded stage set. The oldest basement here dates to the 13th century.

At the centre stands the Brabo Fountain, sculpted by Jef Lambeaux in 1887. It depicts the hero Silvius Brabo hurling the severed hand of the giant Antigoon into the Scheldt. According to legend, Antigoon demanded tolls from passing ships and cut off the hands of those who refused. Brabo defeated him and threw his hand into the river — “hand werpen” — giving the city its name.

You enter a patrician house on the Vrijdagmarkt and step into a world of lead type, leather-bound folios, and the faint scent of old ink. This is the Plantin-Moretus Museum — a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the only museum of its kind on the list.

Christophe Plantin founded his printing empire here in 1555, and the Moretus family continued it for three centuries. At its peak, this was the largest printing house in Europe.

You step into Hendrik Conscienceplein and the Baroque facade of St. Charles Borromeo Church towers above you. Built between 1615 and 1621 as a Jesuit church, its design is often attributed to the influence of Peter Paul Rubens.

On 18 July 1718, lightning hit the church and a devastating fire destroyed 39 ceiling paintings by Rubens. What survives today is still magnificent — a riot of marble, gilded wood, and Baroque exuberance.

You walk through a grand Italian portico into a courtyard garden, and suddenly you’re inside the world of Peter Paul Rubens. Rubens bought this property in 1610 and transformed it into a Baroque palazzo that doubled as both his family home and a workshop employing dozens of assistants.

In the garden studio, Rubens produced an extraordinary 1,400 paintings in his career. Kings and queens sat for portraits here.

You almost walk past it. Between a restaurant and a souvenir shop on Oude Koornmarkt, there’s an unmarked wooden door. Push it open and you step from the 21st century into the 16th. The Vlaeykensgang is a narrow cobblestone passage dating from 1591.

In its heyday, this was where Antwerp’s poorest residents lived — shoemakers who were paid with the right to sound the alarm bell of the Cathedral. Today, the passage houses some of Antwerp’s most exclusive restaurants.

You stand before the oldest building in Antwerp — a medieval fortress built around 1200–1225 for the Dukes of Brabant on the banks of the Scheldt. Het Steen was designed to control river access, and for over five centuries it served as a prison (1303–1827).

In the 1880s, large parts of the castle were demolished during river-straightening works. Het Steen was fully renovated in 2021 as a modern visitor centre with a rooftop panorama.

You enter a soaring hall of iron and glass. The Handelsbeurs opened in 1531 as the first purpose-built commodity exchange on earth, and its design inspired copies from London to Amsterdam.

At its peak, Antwerp was the richest city in Europe. After the Fall of Antwerp in 1585, Amsterdam gradually replaced it. Destroyed by fire in 1858, rebuilt by 1872, abandoned in the 1990s, and reopened in 2019 after a stunning renovation.

You step inside and the dome takes your breath away. Antwerpen-Centraal was designed by architect Louis Delacenserie and completed in 1905. It was nicknamed the “spoorwegkathedraal” (railway cathedral) for its vast dome. The train hall spans 185 metres long and 44 metres high.

In 2009, a modern multi-level renovation added high-speed rail connections underneath without touching the historic facade.

Your journey ends 60 metres above the Scheldt, on the free rooftop terrace of the MAS — Museum aan de Stroom. Opened in 2011, this striking tower of red sandstone and curved glass was designed by Neutelings Riedijk Architects.

The museum sits in the Eilandje district, the old port neighbourhood transformed into one of Europe’s most exciting waterfront developments. From the top, you can see the cathedral spire, the Scheldt bending toward the sea, and the cranes of Europe’s second-largest port.