Established Museum since 1992 Curator Sandra Janssens | Type Silversmith Website www.zilvermuseum.be | |
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Location Sterckshof castle in Deurne, Belgium Address Hooftvunderlei 160, 2100 Antwerpen, Belgium Similar Diamant, Museum aan de Stroom, Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Fotomuse Antwerpen ‑ FOMU, ModeMus | ||
The Sterckshof silver museum of the province of Antwerp (Dutch: Zilvermuseum Sterckshof Provincie Antwerpen, French: Musée de l'Argenterie de Sterckshof) is located in Sterckshof castle in Deurne, Province of Antwerp, Belgium.
Contents
Purpose
The Sterckshof silver museum is a center for research, expertise and promotion of the silversmith's trade. In 2007 the museum was the first museum to ever win the art history prize of the 's-Hertogenbosch Art & Antiques Fair.
Collection
The Sterckshof castle was built in neo-Flemish Renaissance style, completed in 1938. The silver museum opened in the castle in 1994 after a major renovation. The museum is about 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) from downtown Antwerp. It is located in the Rivierenhof, one of the city's largest parks. The castle includes courtyards with a wishing well, a French garden and ruins.
The silver collection is extremely varied, covering the period from the 16th century to the present. The artifacts are presented thematically, with techniques, brands, styles and the use of the objects presented in context. The museum displays include domestic and religious artifacts. The museum also includes exceptional examples of antique Belgian furniture.
Other aspects
The museum holds silver expertise days and silver Sunday. It organizes regular discussions, night classes and tours, and gears custom programs on the theme of silver to schools and groups. There is a functioning silversmith's workshop. The library of the Sterckshof Silver Museum has a unique collection with a focus on Belgian goldsmiths. There is also an extensive collection related to applied arts, as well as descriptions of artifacts, art styles, information about artists, conservation and restoration techniques and specific topics.
Since 1996 the Sterckshof Silver Museum of the Province of Antwerp has given an annual contract to a Belgian silversmith to make a silver artifact for the museum's collection. The museum and the selected jeweler agree on the object to be made, which should be characteristic of the artist's oeuvre. It is manufactured entirely or in part in the museum's silver workshop. The museum publishes a small monograph on the artist.
As of 2013 the curator was Sandra Janssens, formerly a scholarly associate at Musea Brugge, who replaced acting director Wim Nys in September 2010.