Royal Museums of Art and History

The Royal Museum of Art and History includes museums: Museum of Art and History, Museum of the Far East, Museum of Musical Instruments, and Porte de Hal. Together they constitute one of the ten federal scientific institutions. They have one of the largest and most diverse art collections in Belgium. These four museums are full of works of art and objects from different continents of the world, from prehistory to the present day.

Museum of Art and History

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You can see national archaeological artefacts from the time of Merovingians, as well as finds from Egypt and the Middle East. Among the stars of the collection are Egyptian sarcophagi, large floor mosaics from Apamea and a model of ancient Rome.

The collection of pre-Columbian art and the colossal statue from Easter Island are particularly well-known. The collection also includes examples of European decorative art from Roman times to Art Deco. Equally interesting are the liturgical treasures and tapestries of the Meuse valley.

http://www.kmkg-mrah.be/

Address:

Parc du Cinquantenaire 10
1000 Brussels

Opening hours:

tuesday-friday: 9.30-17.00
saturday, sunday: 10.00-17.00

Ticket price:

10 euros

Far East Museum

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it was located in the northern part of Domaine Laeken (the park and surrounding areas in the Brussels district of Haysel. Here is the seat of the monarch) and was part of the Musées royaux d'art et d'histoire de Bruxelles.

The Far East Museum included: La Tour Japonaise (Japanese Pagoda), Pavillon Chinois (Chinese Pavilion) and Musée d'Art Japonais (Museum of Japanese Art), which had a unique collection of eastern engravings and Chinese porcelain on a European scale.

Unfortunately, this wonderful museum is now closed to visitors. The technical condition of buildings constructed in the last century necessitated their renovation. Part of the Chinese porcelain collection can be admired at the Museum of Art and History, formerly known as the Cinquantenaire Museum.

Japanese pagoda

After the Universal Exhibition in Paris in 1900, King Leopold II decided to decorate the park next to his estate with buildings characteristic of the Far East architecture. The task of creating the design was given to the French architect Alexander Marcel. First, a Japanese pagoda was created . The work was carried out by Belgian companies, but the building, 40 meters high, was assembled without nails according to traditional Japanese techniques. To preserve the authentic style, most of the decorations, inside and outside, were made in Japan.

Work started in 1901 a year. After three years, the pagoda was ready. It was inaugurated on 6 May 1905 a year. In 1909 the king abandoned the idea of creating a museum here, and the building was entrusted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Until the First World War it was open to visitors. In 1922, he was assigned to the Ministry of Arts and Sciences. The building for visitors was closed in 1947. It wasn't until 1989 that it was made available to the public again. The Japanese pagoda gathers exhibits about Japanese culture and art. Around the building a garden was organized in the same style.

Chinese pavilion

Alexander Marcel also designed the chinese pavilion. The king's assumption was to be a luxury restaurant for entrepreneurs who wanted to establish business contacts with China. Construction works began in 1903, but in 1905 the construction was suspended. Only in the year 1909 the construction of the building was resumed. The works were completed in 1913 a year. The pavilion owes its external appearance to panels imported from shanghai. In 1921, the pavilion was entrusted to the Royal Museum of Art and History. It has collected over the years a great collection of chinese porcelain.

Address:

Avenue Van Praet 44
1020 Brussels

Attention !!!:

Museum under renovation. Closed for security reasons. Part of the exhibition can be viewed in Museum of Art and History.

Museum of Musical Instruments

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is housed in a beautiful glass building built in style art moureau. In the past there was a department store Old England (name visible on the facade of the building to this day), designed in 1899 by Paul Saintenoy. The impressive glass and iron structure is covered with fancy domes.

On 3000 meters of exhibition space, on several floors of the building, a collection of approximately 1200 exhibits has been collected. The beginnings of the museum collection date back to the nineteenth century, when the state bought 80 historic and exotic instruments. In 1876, the number doubled when King Leopold II donated the museum of 97 Hindu instruments he received from Maharaja. The museum's biggest attractions include prototypes of instruments by Adolf Sax, a Belgian inventor of the saxophone.

While visiting this wonderful collection, thanks to the received headphones, passing by the instruments, we can hear their sounds (headphones are controlled by infrared signal). At the very top of the building there is a restaurant with a terrace from which one of the most magnificent views of Brussels extends.

Since its opening in 2000, MIM (such a name clung to the museum) has become the most popular cultural attraction in the area Mont des Arts, visited by about 125 thousand tourists a year.

Address:

Montagne de la Cour 2
B- 1000 Brussels

Opening hours:

tuesday-friday: 9.30-17.00
saturday, sunday: 10.00-17.00

Ticket price:

10 euros

Porte de hal

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perched on the northwestern edge of the Marolles workers district, on the border of Petit Ring, at Boulevard du Midi. This is the only preserved fragment of the second defensive wall of Brussels. The building, which was built in 1381, served successively as a grain warehouse, a Lutheran church and a prison.

Architect Henri Beyaert rebuilt part of the gate in the years 1868-1870. He designed the raw medieval tower in a neo-Gothic style. In the front of the inner gate he added a round tower crowned with a conical roof and a monumental spiral staircase. Originally, the building had grilles and a drawbridge over the moat. Currently renovated in the neo-Gothic style belongs to the Royal Museum. From the top of the tower there is a beautiful view of the capital's panorama.

Address:

Boulevard du Midi 150
1000 Brussels

Opening hours:

monday-thursday: 9.30-17.00
saturday, sunday: 10.00-18.00

Ticket price:

12 euros