He's Buried Here

Antwerp is a great walking city. I have tried to walk every day in this big little city, clocking between three and eight miles, strolling the main streets or dipping into tiny alleys. Often I leave our little apartment with no real goal or destination. It's been profoundly satisfying.

This little street, called Sint Jacobsstraat, brought me to the resting place for Peter Paul Rubens.

I wasn't even looking for it. But as I said in an earlier post, Rubens really is everywhere in Antwerp.

As it happened, this handsome mural caught my eye and I headed toward it. The building that hosts the mural is a neighborhood school.

Then I spotted the gothic windows of the cathedral further down and, voila!, you can imagine my delight when I learned it was Rubens' last stop.

Known in English as St. James Cathedral, this is a pilgrimage church for pilgrims traveling to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Even today, if a traveler makes an appointment with the parish priest she can receive a St. James blessing.

The site was originally a primitive pilgrim cottage outside Antwerp's old city walls, dating to the early decades of the 14th century. People would stop here for the night before heading west on their journey. Over time, the site was purchased by the church.

Built originally in 1413 and then renovated and subsequentially elevated to a parish church, Sint Jacobskerk is one of five active Catholic churches in Antwerp today. The tower is known architecturally as Brabant Gothic style.

And since tourist season is only just beginning, it was not open for me to check out the inside. The gates were open but the door was closed.

Peter Paul Rubens tomb, 1645
Madonna altarpiece, 1638
Our Lady's Chapel
Sint Jacobskerk, Antwerp

Not only is Rubens buried here but he also painted this Madonna altarpiece in 1638 and married his second wife Helena Fourment here in 1630.

The altarpiece is a swirling baroque image of the Virgin Mary in blue surrounded by saints. The aging man in the foreground is Hieronymous, a church father, seated on a lion. Mary Magdalene holds a balsam jar, while the soldier in black armor represents St. George defeating the dragon.

The painting was originally commissioned by a patron but the deal was never consummated. Thus Rubens kept it for himself and, before he died, established that it was this image he wanted to be placed at his tomb. It took another five years after his death in 1640 for the chapel to be completed but today, this altarpiece and his tomb are often known as the Rubens Chapel.

This, then, was one afternoon's find on a lucky day of foraging. May I be blessed again tomorrow, and all the tomorrows to come.

Have You Seen This Man?

He seems to be everywhere.

Peter Paul Rubens
Self Portrait
c. 1630, oil on canvas
64.2 x 48 cm
Rubenshuis, Antwerp

But now I have already gotten ahead of myself.

A couple days ago we left the lovely monastery which was our home in Ghent and headed for Antwerp. It was wet most of the day, so our departure was bittersweet, a mixture of teardrops and rain as we left this most beautiful little city. A summer return to Ghent is now on the bucket list.

Antwerp is another new city for us and, despite the rain, it's looking good so far. We are situated in a third story apartment in the oldest part of the city, shops and restaurants are just steps away, and from our lofty view we see the stained glass windows and romanesque arches of Cathedral of Our Lady Antwerp just across the way. According to the cathedral's website, this church was originally constructed in 1124 as a small parish. Over a thousand years later it has evolved into the massive Gothic cathedral that it is today. A variety of bells toll from the tower ... well, like clockwork.

Antwerp is not Rubens' birthplace but his family came here when he was a young child. Later in 1610, when he was a well known artist, he bought a house in the city with his first wife Isabella Brant. He lived in it until he died in 1640.

Jacques van Croes
View of Rubens' house in Antwerp, 1684
11 x 14 inches
British Museum

Over that thirty year period, Rubens enlarged the house, added a statue gallery to host his growing art collection, and built a garden pavilion in the Italian tradition. It was a stately city house with an amazing collection -- even by 17th century standards -- of portraits, statues, jewelry and landscapes.

After Rubens died, his famous art collection was sold off and now only portions of the old house remain. But the city of Antwerp has resurrected the famous painter's house into a fine museum called Rubenshuis, complete with a few of the original works which Rubens owned.

photo courtesy of the Rubenshuis

Indeed the entire city is celebrating their favorite artist with a city-wide commemoration called Antwerp Baroque 2018: Rubens Inspires. Thus there are banners and images of the master plastered all over the city. Some of the events include a multi-day musical festival called Game of Tones, a three day research festival about the role of the Baroque in 2018, and a human sculpture of 1000 residents from the city of Antwerp.

Clearly Rubens is their pride and his image looms large across the city. Take for example this bronze statue in Groenplaats, a town center just around the corner from our airbnb.

photo courtesy of Mikestravelguide