Arents House Museum, Bruges

The Arents House Museum is one of the most visited tourist attractions in Bruges. It houses a lace museum, a coach museum and a celebrated collection of works by British artist, Frank Brangwyn.

Arents House is a large 18th century mansion in Bruges with a picturesque garden and a coach house. It was owned by the aristocratic Arents family and was one of the most beautiful residences in the city.

The Coach House of the Arents House Museum has a collection of old sledges and carriages. The ground floor of the main house hosts a lace museum that displays bobbin, needlepoint and mixed lace. Most of the exhibits are from famous Flemish lace making institutions in Bruges, Flanders and Mechelen. There are also samples of lace from other countries, including France and Italy. Besides lace, the technique of lace making is portrayed in a series of paintings at the museum. The well known part of the Arents House Museum is the second floor with the famous Brangwyn collection on display. Many of the artist’s realistic paintings, depicting the hard life of dock and factory workers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, are featured in the halls. Other works include watercolors, oil paintings and engravings, depicting scenes of the places visited by Brangwyn. Exhibits also include carpets, pottery and furniture designed or collected by the artist.