Antwerp - Guild-Houses

(Local Name: Gildehuizen) Apart from the Stadhuis most of the buildings bordering the Grote Markt are former"gildehuizen", originally the headquarters of the city's 16th and 17th C. guilds. Among those on the north side are the Gildehuis der Kuipers (Coopers' House; No. 5), the Huis van de Schutters (Archer's House; No. 7) and the Huis van de Kruideniers (Grocers' House; No. 11), while on the southeast side stand the Huis van de Kleermakers (Tailors' House; No. 38) and the Huis van de Timmerlieden (Carpenters' House; No. 40). The streets behind and to the north of the Stadhuis (Gildekamersstraat, Zilversmid-, Braderij- and Kuipersstraat) offer further glimpses of the beauty that was once old Antwerp.