TreM.a – Musée des Arts anciens du Namurois

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About TreM.a – Musée des Arts anciens du Namurois

The TreM.a is the provincial museum of ancient arts of Namur. It occupies the Hôtel de Gaiffier d'Hestroy, a patrician house from the first half of the 18th century on Rue de Fer, the shopping street that slopes down from the station to the centre. The house was bequeathed to the Province in 1950 on the condition that it become a museum, and the collection brings together pieces from the Province and the Société archéologique de Namur.

The central piece is the Tesouro de Oignies, a set of 13th-century religious goldsmith work that Belgians count among the country's seven wonders. It was made by Hugo d'Oignies, a lay brother of the priory of Oignies, between the Sambre and the Meuse, and by his workshop. They are reliquaries, chalices, crosses and gospel-book covers in gilded silver, with filigree, niello and hunting scenes. Two works bear the goldsmith's signature: a chalice and a binding plate.

The other rooms cover the art of the Meuse region from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. There are wooden religious sculptures, altarpieces, stained glass, gold embroideries, pieces from the old craft guilds and brass objects from Dinant, the so-called dinanderie. In painting, the highlight is Henri Bles, a 16th-century landscape painter born in the region, with works such as Saint Jérôme dans un paysage.

The museum mounts two temporary exhibitions a year and has an inner garden that opens on fine days. The permanent collection rooms are on floors connected by staircases.