Homepage - Urban Archeology Days

At the heart of the timber frames of the Saint-Nicolas church, Brussels

Saint-Nicolas church, rue au Beurre - Boterstraat, Brussels

Already cited in 1174, the church was built in the Romanesque style, with a forecourt and tower on the façade, until it was converted/reconstructed in the 14th century, giving it a Gothic style. It suffered…

Already cited in 1174, the church was built in the Romanesque style, with a forecourt and tower on the façade, until it was converted/reconstructed in the 14th century, giving it a Gothic style. It suffered a number of setbacks: the Wars of Religion at the end of the 16th century, fire following the bombardment of 1695 and the fall of its tower, rebuilt in 1714, the scars of which are most visible in the roof…

Already cited in 1174, the church was built in the Romanesque style, with a forecourt and tower on the façade, until it was converted/reconstructed in the 14th century, giving it a Gothic style. It suffered a number of setbacks: the Wars of Religion at the end of the 16th century, fire following the bombardment of 1695 and the fall of its tower, rebuilt in 1714, the scars of which are most visible in the roof space. A team of archaeologists and dendrochronologists will be (more…)

Coudenberg Palace : visit of the Lapidarium collection

Villa Hermosastraat 5 rue Villa Hermosa, 1000 Brussels

Coudenberg Palace is more than just an archaeological site or a museum: it is also home to a lesser-known lapidarium, kept in the museum's cellars. Usually, this collection of archaeological stones is only accessible to…

Coudenberg Palace is more than just an archaeological site or a museum: it is also home to a lesser-known lapidarium, kept in the museum's cellars. Usually, this collection of archaeological stones is only accessible to researchers. As part of the Urban Archaeology Days, this remarkable venue is exceptionally (more…)

From the cellar to the attic: Site visit rue de la Tête d’or – Guldenhoofdstraat 9-11

rue de la Tête d'Or 9-11

Just a stone's throw from the Grand-Place, the house The Falcon (Le Faucon) dates back to the 13th or 14th century. It was once an inn, then a brewery. Its very well-preserved two-vessel cellar features…

Just a stone's throw from the Grand-Place, the house The Falcon (Le Faucon) dates back to the 13th or 14th century. It was once an inn, then a brewery. Its very well-preserved two-vessel cellar features walls built entirely of stone, covered first with a beamed floor and then with brick vaults reinforced by double arches. The use of stone in middle-class houses is an important marker, often associated with the earliest phases of the town's…

Just a stone's throw from the Grand-Place, the house The Falcon (Le Faucon) dates back to the 13th or 14th century. It was once an inn, then a brewery. Its very well-preserved two-vessel cellar features walls built entirely of stone, covered first with a beamed floor and then with brick vaults reinforced by double arches. The use of stone in middle-class houses is an important marker, often associated with the earliest phases of the town's urbanisation. Despite the damage suffered during the bombardment of Brussels in 1695 and the partial reconstruction that followed, the house still retains some interesting (more…)

The archaeological laboratory of urban.brussels

Mont des Arts 10-13, 1000 Bruxelles

Objects discovered on archaeological sites in the Brussels Region are processed in the urban.brussels archaeological laboratory. The guided tour will give the public an insight into the complex treatment process to which the archaeological finds…

Objects discovered on archaeological sites in the Brussels Region are processed in the urban.brussels archaeological laboratory. The guided tour will give the public an insight into the complex treatment process to which the archaeological finds are subjected from the moment they are unearthed. Some exceptional objects will be on display, including (more…)

Brussels under the microscope: a visit to the geoarchaeological lab

Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan – boulevard de la Plaine 2, 1050 Brussels, Building C, 5th floor

Have you always wanted to take a look behind the scenes of archaeological research? VUB researchers will open the doors of their laboratory and guide you into the world of microscopy, showing you how microscopic…

Have you always wanted to take a look behind the scenes of archaeological research? VUB researchers will open the doors of their laboratory and guide you into the world of microscopy, showing you how microscopic observations bring medieval Brussels to life. After a brief introduction, (more…)

Archaeological walk in the footsteps of the Senne

in front of the entrance to the STIB/MIVB Lemmonier station (at the intersection of Boulevard Lemmonier and Boulevard du Midi)

This walk will take you on a journey in the footsteps of the Senne river within the Pentagon, following recent archaeological excavations of urban.brussels, as well as older discoveries. The river may have disappeared from…

This walk will take you on a journey in the footsteps of the Senne river within the Pentagon, following recent archaeological excavations of urban.brussels, as well as older discoveries. The river may have disappeared from the urban landscape after its vaulting in the second half of the 19th century, but it nevertheless left a lasting mark on the city centre. A witness to a time when only mammoths and other prehistoric animals inhabited the valley,…

This walk will take you on a journey in the footsteps of the Senne river within the Pentagon, following recent archaeological excavations of urban.brussels, as well as older discoveries. The river may have disappeared from the urban landscape after its vaulting in the second half of the 19th century, but it nevertheless left a lasting mark on the city centre. A witness to a time when only mammoths and other prehistoric animals inhabited the valley, it would later become (more…)

Of stone and wood – Visit of the priory of Rouge-Cloître through its building materials

Rouge-Cloître, rue du Rouge-Cloître 4, 1160 Bruxelles

For many years, the priory of Rouge-Cloître - built in the heart of a valley in the Sonian Forest - has been the subject of several archaeological missions. Guided by the landscaping and restoration work,…

For many years, the priory of Rouge-Cloître - built in the heart of a valley in the Sonian Forest - has been the subject of several archaeological missions. Guided by the landscaping and restoration work, these have provided a wealth of data on the buildings and their chronology, as well as on the materials of which they are composed. Thanks to geological and dendrochronological analyses, it has been possible to clearly identify the materials and…

For many years, the priory of Rouge-Cloître - built in the heart of a valley in the Sonian Forest - has been the subject of several archaeological missions. Guided by the landscaping and restoration work, these have provided a wealth of data on the buildings and their chronology, as well as on the materials of which they are composed. Thanks to geological and dendrochronological analyses, it has been possible to clearly identify the materials and their origins - with a few pleasant surprises, including materials that sometimes came from far away! The archaeologists will take you on a tour of (more…)

The Abbey of Forest: looking back at the archaeological research carried out since 2017

Abbaye de Forest - Abdij van Vorst - place Saint-Denis-Sint-Denijsplein, 1190 Forest-Vorst

The Abbey of Forest - of which all that remains today is the 18th-century horseshoe-shaped main courtyard - has a long history and a rich heritage. The Benedictine nuns settled on the site at the…

The Abbey of Forest - of which all that remains today is the 18th-century horseshoe-shaped main courtyard - has a long history and a rich heritage. The Benedictine nuns settled on the site at the very beginning of the 12th century, initially in a priory under the supervision of Affligem Abbey. This became an independent abbey in 1239, and remained so until the end of the Ancien Régime, when the clergy's property was confiscated and…

The Abbey of Forest - of which all that remains today is the 18th-century horseshoe-shaped main courtyard - has a long history and a rich heritage. The Benedictine nuns settled on the site at the very beginning of the 12th century, initially in a priory under the supervision of Affligem Abbey. This became an independent abbey in 1239, and remained so until the end of the Ancien Régime, when the clergy's property was confiscated and the complex sold as national property in 1797. For the past seven years, archaeologists from the Museum Art & History have been studying the abbey in preparation for the work to convert the site into a cultural centre (ABY). The archaeologists will be giving (more…)

Visit of the laboratories of the Institute of Natural Sciences

rue Vautier 29, 1000 Bruxelles

You will be introduced to a number of natural sciences applied to archaeology: anthropology, archaeozoology, archaeobotany and palynology. Scientists from the Institute of Natural Sciences will take you on a tour of their laboratory. They…

You will be introduced to a number of natural sciences applied to archaeology: anthropology, archaeozoology, archaeobotany and palynology. Scientists from the Institute of Natural Sciences will take you on a tour of their laboratory. They will talk about their methods and the results obtained in the various disciplines, all of which provide us with information about daily life in the past. (more…)

Guided walk around some of the facades of the Unesco Grand-Place district

rue des Éperonniers - Spoormakersstraat 55, 1000 Brussels

This walk around the Grand-Place - a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998 - is an opportunity to immerse yourself in the history of the destruction of the district after the bombardment in 1695 by…

This walk around the Grand-Place - a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998 - is an opportunity to immerse yourself in the history of the destruction of the district after the bombardment in 1695 by the troops of the French king Louis XIV. The reconstruction that followed is remarkable in more ways than one: for its speed, its architectural unity in the Baroque style, and the types of building materials used (reused, local, imported). The…

This walk around the Grand-Place - a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998 - is an opportunity to immerse yourself in the history of the destruction of the district after the bombardment in 1695 by the troops of the French king Louis XIV. The reconstruction that followed is remarkable in more ways than one: for its speed, its architectural unity in the Baroque style, and the types of building materials used (reused, local, imported). The tour includes (more…)

Conference/ Midis Découvertes – The eastern wing of the cloister at La Cambre Abbey – exceptional remains of the 13th-century building – Results of the latest archaeological campaigns

Museum Art & History, Parc du Cinquantenaire - Jubelpark, Brussels

The “Midis Découvertes” are an opportunity to enjoy a sandwich during an accessible and popularised scientific lecture. All this in the unique setting of the Péristyle, an open-air conference area with a breathtaking view over…

The “Midis Découvertes” are an opportunity to enjoy a sandwich during an accessible and popularised scientific lecture. All this in the unique setting of the Péristyle, an open-air conference area with a breathtaking view over the Parc du Cinquantenaire. Patrice Gautier, from the Museum Art & History, takes you on a tour of the exceptional medieval remains of the eastern wing of the cloister at La Cambre Abbey, which are still largely unknown. Recent campaigns…

The “Midis Découvertes” are an opportunity to enjoy a sandwich during an accessible and popularised scientific lecture. All this in the unique setting of the Péristyle, an open-air conference area with a breathtaking view over the Parc du Cinquantenaire. Patrice Gautier, from the Museum Art & History, takes you on a tour of the exceptional medieval remains of the eastern wing of the cloister at La Cambre Abbey, which are still largely unknown. Recent campaigns of work on this wing have revealed the primitive medieval spaces of the cloister square, both in plan and in elevation. This lecture takes us back 800 years in time, using archaeology to understand the development of the core of the abbey from its origins…

The Halles Saint-Géry archaeological showcases

Place Saint-Géry 1, 1000 Brussels

The archaeological objects of the Urban.brussels collection are presented to the public at the Halles Saint-Géry in several showcases on the ground floor. The alternation of themes in the largest showcase makes it possible to…

The archaeological objects of the Urban.brussels collection are presented to the public at the Halles Saint-Géry in several showcases on the ground floor. The alternation of themes in the largest showcase makes it possible to show a multitude of objects from daily life, from prehistory to the present day. This showcase is currently dedicated to a selection of discoveries made in 2019 during the archaeological research in the Impasse Saint-Nicolas, at a stone’s throw from…

The archaeological objects of the Urban.brussels collection are presented to the public at the Halles Saint-Géry in several showcases on the ground floor. The alternation of themes in the largest showcase makes it possible to show a multitude of objects from daily life, from prehistory to the present day. This showcase is currently dedicated to a selection of discoveries made in 2019 during the archaeological research in the Impasse Saint-Nicolas, at a stone’s throw from the Grand-Place. At the end of the plot there was a white stone well dating from the second half of the 15th century. It was emptied to a depth of two and a half metres below the ground floor level. Its filling contained a wealth…

See on the map

The Halle Gate

Halle Gate, Boulevard du Midi 150, 1000 Bruxelles

The imposing Halle Gate has dominated the capital since the 14th century. Today, this last vestige of the second city wall is used as a museum, but it has had many functions over the centuries…

The imposing Halle Gate has dominated the capital since the 14th century. Today, this last vestige of the second city wall is used as a museum, but it has had many functions over the centuries (prison, archive, etc.). In 1847, the Halle Gate officially became the Royal Museum of Armour, Antiquities and Ethnology, but the outdated layout of the building made it difficult for visitors to access. The city gate finally took its final shape…

The imposing Halle Gate has dominated the capital since the 14th century. Today, this last vestige of the second city wall is used as a museum, but it has had many functions over the centuries (prison, archive, etc.). In 1847, the Halle Gate officially became the Royal Museum of Armour, Antiquities and Ethnology, but the outdated layout of the building made it difficult for visitors to access. The city gate finally took its final shape in 1860, following the work of the architect H. Beyaert... Today, by means of various historical and archaeological objects, a museum circuit tells the story of the time when Brussels was a fortified city. At the top of the monument, the crenellated rampart offers a…