Antwerp - Meir

East of the Koninklijke Academy the Béguinage in Rodestraat dates from 1542-46. The church was restored in the 19th C.

The Wapper continues at its southern end into Maria Pijpelincxstraat and then Oude Vaartplaats where a Sunday bird market is held, a major tourist attraction. Plants, clothing, food, antiques and junk are among the items sold, as well as birds.

Off to the left of the Meir coming from Meirbrug the Handelsbeurs (Commercial Exchange) in Twaalfmaandenstraat was erected in 1868-72 as a replacement for Dominic de Waghemakere's original (1531) destroyed by fire in 1858. Jos Schadde's building features a huge glass-covered hall on which a great many other stock exchanges were subsequently modeled. The Exchange is a public thoroughfare with access on all four sides.

The Flemish Cultural Museum and Archives traces the history of Flemish culture from the 18th century. It posseses a number of sculptures, paintings, photographs and documents of historical interest.

At the eastern end of the Meir a pair of identical department stores in Art Nouveau style face each other across the street.

Both Maria Pijpelincxstraat and Oude Vaartplaats open out onto Theaterplein, a large amphitheater-like square with, on its north side, the Theater Center and Stadsschouwburg (Civic Theater).

Set in a pleasant court at the western end of Lange Nieuwstraat, a few steps north of the Beurs, are the buildings of the former 15th C. Sint-Niklaashospitaal (Nos. 3-5), including a Late Gothic chapel.

Further along the street the Burgundian Chapel (No. 31) takes its name from the 15th C. heraldic wall-paintings which decorate it.

Meir No. 85, Osterrieth Huis, another 18th C. Roccoco former mansion, is now the headquarters of a bank.

Minderbroedersstraat leads at its eastern end into Mutsaertstraat where, since 1662, the Koninklijke Acadamie voor Schone Kunsten (Royal Academy of Fine Arts) has occupied the buildings of a former Minorite monastery. Archways and other architectural pieces can be seen in the grounds.

Walking east along the Meir, the handsome Roccoco facade of No. 50, the former Koninklijke Paleis (Royal Palace), is the first to catch the eye. Having begun life as a patrician mansion in 1745, the house was Napoleon's Antwerp residence during the French occupation. In its latterday role as an international culture center (I.C.C.), it provides a venue for exhibitions of contemporary art.