Bruges closes archaeology museum, re-houses collection
Low visitor numbers and a need to modernise have prompted a new approach to showing off the city’s ancient past
Relic rethink
While low visitor numbers are suspected to be behind the decision, the city is pitching the closure as a change in strategy for exhibiting its archaeological collection. “The building is not very suitable for changing presentations or initiatives that show different perspectives or new material from recent excavations,” a statement explained.
The move to the Gruuthuse Museum, due to take place during 2021, will allow more flexibility. “The collection will be on display in a beautifully renovated museum and will be seen by many more visitors,” culture city councillor Nico Blontrock told De Standaard.
The Archeological Museum was housed in the old St Jan’s Hospital in the city centre
He added that the long-term ambition was to find a new site for the museum, although that would be a decision for a future administration. Meanwhile, the space currently occupied by the Archeological Museum, in the former eye clinic of St Jan’s Hospital, will be converted into office space for the Bruges Museum Service.
Bruges’ archaeology collection is particularly rich in objects linked to the potters, tanners, and painters who practiced their trades in the city during the Middle Ages. Other highlights include a prehistoric stone knife that is the earliest evidence of people living in the region, a wooden Merovingian wheel, and a long tabor pipe. This is a musical instrument from the 14th-15th century that is designed to be played with one hand, leaving the other free to bang a drum.
Photos, from top: Courtesy Koepel van Attracties & Musea, courtesy Musea Brugge/Twitter
