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The story of the site

Along the frayed fault line between the city and port lies a raw and rusty area. For many Antwerp residents, this represents a blind spot on the map. However, this area oozes history linked to the once bustling in-city port.

The Conversion of Saul

The tile panel is internationally considered as the most refined evidence of sixteenth century ceramics from Antwerp.

The Antwerp corona archive

The MAS and the FelixArchief invited all Antwerp citizens to contribute to an archive about daily life during the coronapandemic in Antwerp. Many Antwerp citizens responded with an often very personal contribution.

The MAS ...

... forms the connection between the city and the world, between the past, the present and the future. For an impression, check out this trailer.

The MAS has many more stories to tell

In the exhibition, you can listen to twelve stories from Antwerp and around the world. But the MAS has collected many more. Read a few more here.

The Antarctic today

The exhibition also tells the story of Antarctica today. You will find out how scientists are still conducting groundbreaking scientific research there. This topical part of the exhibition was created in collaboration with the International Polar Foundation.

The conversion of Saul

The Saulus tableau depicts a Biblical scene: on his way from Jerusalem to Damascus, the Roman Saul, persecuting Christians, is blinded by a lightning bolt and thrown from his horse. This tile tableau of over 1 by 2 metres has 98 tiles in majolica, colourful and glazed earthenware.

The Averbode altarpiece

In the centre of this altarpiece, those close to Christ are mourning his death, and above in miniature, we see Christ again, but alive and in the limbo of Hell. Below, each of the three women are depicting a virtue: Faith, Hope and Love. When the altarpiece is closed, you can see the tortured Christ being shown to the people on the left, and on the right, Jesus being offered a sweat cloth by Veronica.

The cope of Nonnemielen

This choir hood is a luxurious robe from around 1500 and is a fine example of the so-called "opus anglicanum". It is one of the few surviving examples that ended up in Flanders. For Antwerp, the image on the choir hood is very special.

The nine contemplations

The nine contemplations on the impurity of the human body depicts how finite the human body is. Japanese monks used such series as an aid to their meditation.