Explore Antwerp

The Cathedral of Our Lady is the Gothic seat of the Diocese of Antwerp, begun in 1352 by Jan and Pieter Appelmans and never fully completed; its north tower rises 123 metres and belongs to the UNESCO-listed belfries of Belgium and France. Inside hang altarpieces by Peter Paul Rubens, among them The Raising of the Cross and The Descent from the Cross.

St. Charles Borromeo Church on the Hendrik Conscienceplein was built in 1615–1621 as Antwerp's Jesuit church, with Rubens contributing to its design and decoration. Its 39 ceiling paintings by Rubens and his workshop were lost when lightning set the church on fire in 1718. The baroque facade, the Lady Chapel, the crypt and a lace collection can be visited.

The Rubenshuis is the former home and workshop of Peter Paul Rubens, who bought the house in 1610 and rebuilt it after his own designs as an Italian-style palazzo with a portico and a baroque garden. While the historic residence is closed for restoration, visitors can see the Rubens Experience, a new visitor centre about the painter, and the garden.

The Museum aan de Stroom (MAS) is a 60-metre tower of red Indian sandstone and curved glass in Antwerp's Eilandje docks, designed by Neutelings Riedijk and opened in 2011. It holds collections on the port, shipping and world cultures, including a visible store, and its stacked floors lead up to a roof with a panorama over the city and the Scheldt.

The Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp, founded in 1810, shows paintings, sculptures and drawings from the 14th to the 20th century, with works by Jan van Eyck, Rubens and James Ensor. Its neoclassical building in the Zuid district was designed by Jean-Jacques Winders and Frans Van Dijk, opened in 1890 and is crowned by two bronze chariots by Thomas Vinçotte.