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Heritage Stories

Heritage Stories

The Dendermonde Mammoth - © City Museum, Dendermonde

The Mammoth of Dendermonde

A crate of beer. That’s what it took to convince Hugo De Potter, a crane operator, to help retrieve a giant mammoth skull from a sand quarry in Dendermonde in the late 1960s. Today, that skull completes the mounted mammoth at the Vleeshuismuseum in Dendermonde. The Dendermonde mammoth is not the only piece of animal heritage in Flanders. Countless museums

Kempens chickens - Living Heritage Center - sle.be

The Kempens Kieken

Just a chicken? The Kempens kieken isn’t just any chicken—it’s a succulent piece of Flemish heritage with a history dating back millennia. The story of the Kempens kieken begins in Asia, around 3000 BCE. That’s when people first began raising chickens, partly for their meat and eggs.

Children in costume singing for Saint Martin's Day, 2010 - mechelenblogt.be, photo by Jan Smets

Singing on Saint Martin

Halloween has been gaining popularity in Flanders over the past few decades. At the end of October, you increasingly see hollowed-out pumpkins with lights inside them. Children go door to door in costume to collect candy. In its current form, Halloween originated in America, but it is originally a European, Catholic

Portrait of Robrecht van Béthune in the Counts' Chapel in Kortrijk - © Wikimedia Commons

The Lion of Flanders

*The Lion of Flanders* or *The Battle of the Golden Spurs* is a novel by Hendrik Conscience. The book was published in 1838. The Antwerp-based author drew on historical sources and folk tales to tell a fictional story set in the early 14th century. The backdrop is the historical conflict

The guild houses “Den Cruywagen” (tanners) and “Den Sack” (carpenters and coopers) on Brussels’ Grand Place - © Wikimedia Commons, photo by Pol Mayer

Trade guilds

As early as the 11th century, informal organizations of people with the same profession or trade began to emerge in the Low Countries. These artisans often lived together in the same streets and neighborhoods of medieval towns. In the regions that today make up Flanders, they were primarily active in the food supply, the textile sector, the construction sector, the

Visitors are drawn to an Indian elephant, 1970s - © Antwerp City Archives

Antwerp Zoo

Flanders has thirteen accredited zoos. None of them has as rich a history as Antwerp ZOO. It was founded in 1843 as the country’s very first zoo. From the very beginning, Antwerp ZOO has primarily been a place where people go to relax and watch animals in captivity

Barak 15 in Beringen - Visit Limburg, Photo Archive Visit Beringen - Photo by Jonathan Vaes

Prisoners of War in Barracks 15

In Beringen, nestled among the typical brick houses of the garden-city neighborhood, you’ll find a green wooden barracks: Barracks 15, a replica of a residential barracks from the former Baltic Camp in Beringen. During World War II, prisoners of war who were forced to work in the mines were held there. Today, Barracks 15 is a museum dedicated to migration