Meat House

The Vleeshuis in Antwerp is a former guild house. It is now a museum located between 3 Hespenstraat and Repenstraat on Vleeshouwerstraat. The slope where 3 Hespenstraat meets the Burchtgracht is also known as 'den Bloedberg' (the Blood Mountain).
In the Middle Ages, sales buildings emerged to provide sellers the opportunity to conduct business in a covered space. The Vleeshuis was built in 1250 near the castle of Antwerp (Het Steen) specifically to sell slaughtered animals.
Around 1500, the building became too small and due to neglect, it also fell into disrepair. The butchers' guild decided to build a new meat house, close to the meat market. There, the animals were slaughtered and processed. The new building was to accommodate 62 butchers, meeting rooms, and storage spaces. Herman de Waghemakere designed the building, which was constructed between 1501 and 1504. It is a late Gothic building made of red brick and white sandstone.
During the French occupation in 1793, the guilds were abolished. Since then, the Vleeshuis has only been used as a storage space.
After 1830, various artists took up residence in the building. They had studios there. Among others, Nicaise de Keyser worked there.
The then Provincial Commission for Monument Preservation had the idea to set up a museum to preserve pieces from antiquity that had been found in Antwerp. The Antwerp city council purchased the Vleeshuis for this purpose, had the building renovated, and in 1913, the building opened as a museum.
The museum houses a collection of metal, ceramics, iconography, elements of architecture and interior, and musical instruments.

Source: N.N., Vleeshuis (Antwerp), URL: http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vleeshuis_(Antwerpen), accessed on April 5, 2011

Lisa Maes