Shipping forecast: Mariekerke museum will charm you
For 25 years Armand de Becker has been collecting everything connected to shipping and the history of the village of Mariekerke. The result is a diverse but valuable collection, brought together in Het Streekmuseum
Memories of the sea
When he puts on the light you stand face-to-face with the Streekmuseum’s showpiece: a model of a 17th-century galleon, the Prince William 2. At more than six metres long, 4.7 metres high and one metre wide, it’s the largest model ship in the country, De Becker explains with pride. “Here you see more than 10 years’ work. Everything is reconstructed as it was in the original ship,” he says. Along the open wall of the vessel it becomes clear how detailed everything inside is; even the cannons are there.
It’s a life’s work, just like the rest of the museum. “I traced back my family tree to the 16th century,” says De Becker. “All of them were boatmen or people who had something to do with the water. I myself used to be a ship engineer. But after a serious accident I could no longer work, so as a tribute to my family history I started a museum about shipping, first in my garage, but it soon became too small.” Now the museum extends over a labyrinth of chambers in three houses. “But if you give me three more houses, I can fill them too without problems. Moving out is not an option any more. The largest model is forever embedded in the floor.”
The concept is simple: Everything that has to do with shipping or the history of Mariekerke in Bornem, Antwerp province, will find its place in the museum. This has led to a bizarre collection ranging from miniature ships on Roman coins to furniture from 100 years ago. But where does all this stuff come from? “I used to know someone who worked on a dredger on the Scheldt. Everything he found on the bottom of the river he gave to us,” explains De Becker.
“If someone dies and his house is emptied, we go have a look. And many of our volunteers are themselves retired fishermen and boatmen. If someone stops his work on the water, we know it from each other. On the old ships there is often much to find.”
“It’s our choice”
Still more rooms are full of other fascinating objects, like an old diving suit that could have come from a Tintin comic. Two giant wooden mortars, designed to salvage sunken ships. Fossils from the bottom of the Scheldt. Tools from shipbuilding, eel fishing equipment, a reconstructed local fish store… This isn’t a place where you’ll get bored easily. But the main attraction is the miniature boats; a whole fleet of them, you might say.
If you give me three more houses, I can fill them too without problems
Creating miniature boats is a popular activity among retired fishermen. All types are collected here, but in particular the boats that once sailed on the Scheldt,” says De Becker. “This type, for example, was an eel fishing boat. There was only one in Mariekerke; the others had to attach their small boats on it to fish for eel.”
Back in the garden of the Streekmuseum, another surprise awaits. It looks like if a life-size ship has been buried. “In the summer it is really nice to sit out here around the ship. Sometimes there are three buses of tourists every day, and the farthest visitors came from Brazil. A Brazilian from Mariekerke had his family over, and together they visited our museum. Really, just look in the guest book!”
De Becker has good reason to be proud of his museum. It’s a collection of special items, each with its own story, a unique series of miniature boats, many of which are homemade. And all this in a museum that has also become the village’s meeting place. “We’ve achieved all that without subsidies or support from the government,” he says. “It’s our choice, so we can do what we want. Altogether there are about 50 volunteers, mainly former boatmen. We amuse ourselves, and that’s what counts in the end.”
The Streekmuseum is at Omgangstraat 34, Mariekerke. It is open to visits every day from 10.00 to 21.00, except on Tuesdays.
