Page 169 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Belgium & Luxembourg

ANT WERP, FLEMISH BR ABANT AND LIMBURG  167

Sugar Town. In celebra tion of
this industry, the town has an
interactive Suikermuseum, or
Sugar Museum, which occupies
a former courthouse in the vast
Grote Markt, the second-largest
market square in Belgium. A
stone star in the square marks
the place of execution and
pillory which was in use until
the 1840s. To the rear of the
Sugar Museum is the Stedelijk
Museum Het Toreke, housed
in a 19th-century build ing that
once served as the town’s
The striking red-and-white St-Sulpitiuskerk, in the heart of Diest prison. Its archaeo logical
collection explores Tienen’s
during the 14th century and has north transept, the Gallo-Roman past and more
a charm ing interior of white and Sacramentstoren (Tower of recent history, focussing
red sand stone, with a fine Baroque the Sacraments) is deco rated on special themes such
wooden screen and pulpit. with dozens of stat ues by as death rituals.
Cornelis Floris, the designer Tienen’s Brabant Gothic
E Stadsmuseum de Hofstadt of Antwerp’s town hall Onze-Lieve-Vrouw-ten-Poelkerk
Stadhuis, Grote Markt. Tel (013) was built beside a poel (pool)
353274. Open Apr–Oct: 10am–noon R St-Leonarduskerk and sacred spring between the
and 1–5pm Tue, Thu–Sat (1–5pm Wed Grote Markt. Open Apr–Sep: 2–5pm 13th and 15th centuries. It has
and Sun); Nov–Mar: 1–5pm Tue–Sun. Tue–Sun; Oct: 2–5pm Sat and Sun. & a strangely truncated look as
Closed Oct–Apr: Mon. & there is no nave. The west door,
R St-Sulpitiuskerk built in 1360, has an unusually
Grote Markt. Tel (013) 353271. r Tienen deep, arched portal that leads
Open mid-May–mid-Sep: 2–5pm 20 km (12 miles) SE of Leuven. Road straight into the transept.
Tue–Sun. & treasury. =
Map D2. * 32,000. £ @ n Grote E Suikermuseum
Markt 6; (016) 805738. ∑ tienen.be Grote Markt. Tel (016) 805686.
e Zoutleeuw Sugar beet is a key crop for Open 10am–5pm Tue–Sun. & -
Tienen (Tirlemont in French), ∑ erfgoedsitetienen.be
29 km (18 miles) E of Leuven.
Road Map D2. * 8,000. @ the largest town in the largely R Onze-Lieve-Vrouw- ten-Poelkerk
n Grote Markt; (011) 781288. agri cultural Hageland region. Grote Markt. Open 9am–7pm
∑ zoutleeuw.be It has been refining sugar since Mon and Thu, 9am–6pm Tue,
the 19th century, an occupation Wed and Fri, 3–6pm Sat,
Before falling on leaner times, that has given it the nickname 9am–12:30pm Sun.
Zoutleeuw was a prosperous
cloth town in the Middle Ages.
This explains its 16th-century The Premonstratensians
Stadhuis, the 14th-century St Norbert (1080–1134) was a
cloth hall in the Grote Markt German noble who underwent a
and above all, the scale and sudden conversion at the age of
splendour of the medieval 35 and abandoned his wealth to
St-Leonarduskerk, the Church devote his life to religion. In 1120,
of St Leonard. The exterior of he established a community at
the structure has an unusual Prémontré, in north eastern France.
lopsided pair of towers and a Although members of the order
bulbous spire, but the interior of wore white habits, they were not
the church is magnificent, since monks cloistered in monas teries.
Instead, they were canons – priests
it escaped vandalization both by who live in a community but actively
Protestants in the 16th century engage with the world outside. St Norbert, founder of the
and by French Revolutionaries St Norbert’s approach to religious Premonstratensian Order
in the 1790s. Today, it is richly devotion proved influential in the
decorated with paintings and Low Countries and Germany. The order was suppressed by
sculpture. Suspend ed in the the French occupation of the 1790s, but dramatically revived
nave is an unusual Marianum, a in 19th-century Belgium. Today, the abbeys of Averbode,
painted wrought-iron image of Tongerlo, Parc, Grimbergen and Postel are active houses
the Virgin Mary surrounded by of the order.
angels, dating to 1533. In the

166-167_EW_Belgium.indd 167 18/10/16 3:01 pm