Masterpieces at the Boekentoren

Flanders has a rich heritage tradition. With the Masterpiece Decree, which celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2023, the Flemish government wants to protect and safeguard cultural heritage of exceptional importance and ensure that rare and indispensable objects and collections in Flanders are not lost so that they can be admired and studied by and for the community here and now.

After all, all too many works disappeared from our country over time, and many museums and private collections abroad possess masterpieces of Flemish origin. Ensor's monumental ‘Entry of Christ into Brussels’ in the Getty Museum, for instance, undoubtedly contributes to the aura of Flemish art, but it remains unfortunate that the Belgian government missed the opportunity to buy it so that now it can only be admired in Los Angeles.

What is a masterpiece?

An object or collection is considered a masterpiece if it is considered rare and indispensable for the Flemish Community because of its archaeological, historical, cultural-historical, artistic or scientific significance.

This means that there are extremely few other equal or similar objects or collections in the same condition in Flanders and that the masterpiece possesses at least one of the following four properties: a special value for the collective memory, a linking function, a calibration value or a special artistic value.

Flanders, meanwhile, has more than 1,000 recognised masterpieces.

Masterpieces at the Boekentoren

The University Library's heritage collection boasts no less than 59 masterpieces. Perhaps best known is the Liber Floridus, a manuscript from the 12th-century Renaissance, the life's work of one man, a certain Lambert, canon at Saint-Omer's Church of Our Lady. But Virginie Loveling's war diary was also in the spotlight in 2023, 100 years after her death.