Practical Information
Plan your visit
Ready to be transported back to the 16th century? Here you will find all the practical information you need for a smooth start to your journey through time.
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Opening hoursOpen Tuesday through Sunday. A new show starts every 10 minutes.
First show: 10:00 | Last show: 17:00
*Closed on Mondays. -
LocationMercator Ortelius House
Kloosterstraat 15
2000 Antwerp -
Prices- Adults (online): €17.99 (Box office price: €20)
- Children 12 and under (online): €10.99 (Box office price: €13)
- Children up to 3 years old: free
- Teacher's Pass: €10
Please note: A-Card or Museum Pass? Discounts on the admission price upon presentation of the card; valid only at the ticket counter.
Schools and groups are advised to email: groepen@mercatororteliushuis.be or scholen@mercatororteliushuis.be -
Bicycle parkingAs the Mercator Ortelius House is a protected monument, there is no bicycle parking facility at the entrance.
Please use the nearby public bicycle racks (including Groenplaats and Steenplein). All locations can be found here. -
Who is welcome?Everyone is welcome. This audiovisual journey through time is fascinating for all ages. -
ParkingParking Zuid (Vlaamse en Waalse Kaai) is a 600 m (7-minute) walk away. -
AnimalsWe want to ensure everyone’s comfort, which is why pets are not allowed in the building. Service dogs are, of course, always welcome. -
AccessibilityDue to the historical nature of the building, the experience is unfortunately not wheelchair accessible.
The historic staircases can also pose a challenge for those with reduced mobility.
The Mercator-Ortelius House is not a traditional museum, but an immersive audiovisual experience. You won't be walking past display cases with historical objects or long information boards. Instead, you'll step into an atmospheric story of light and sound. In six beautiful rooms, we bring the 16th century to life before your eyes. It is a visual journey through time that makes the history of Antwerp tangible.
Your journey through time in the six rooms takes 60 minutes (+ a maximum of 10 minutes waiting time). This makes our experience the perfect, narrative stopover during your day in Antwerp. It is ideal to combine with an afternoon of shopping, a walk through the historic center, or dinner in the neighborhood.
Our audiovisual journey through time is accessible to an international audience. You can easily select your own language via a personal audio guide. You can listen to the story of Antwerp's Golden Age in Dutch, French, English, German, or Spanish. That way, no one misses a single detail of history!
Absolutely! Because we tell the story with spectacular images, projections, and sound, it is visually stimulating and understandable for all ages. It is history, but presented in a captivating and dynamic way.
Absolutely! Our engaging audiovisual tour is a fantastic and unique activity for clubs, schools, and businesses. We offer special group rates for groups of 15 or more. Feel free to contact us at groepen@mercatororteliushuis.be or scholen@mercatororteliushuis.be.
A group of up to 15 people can start the tour every 10 minutes.
A group of up to 15 people can start the tour every 10 minutes.
THE BUILDING
Mercator-Ortelius House
The House That Drew the World
Antwerp, 16th century.
The epicenter of the world.
The epicenter of the world.
In the 16th century, Antwerp was not a provincial town, but a global power. Ships from Spain, Portugal, England, and the Low Countries docked here. Goods, ideas, and knowledge converged. The Mercator-Ortelius House embodies that era. It is not a palace, nor does it have a monumental façade, but rather a house where people worked. Where maps were studied. Where worldviews were transformed.
This building is not a symbol of power. It is a symbol of knowledge. Here, trade, science, and curiosity intersected.
This building is not a symbol of power. It is a symbol of knowledge. Here, trade, science, and curiosity intersected.
A house that grew along with the city
The Mercator-Ortelius House was not built all at once. It grew, layer by layer, generation by generation, just like Antwerp itself.
The earliest mention of the plot dates back to 1477. In the 16th and 17th centuries, wealthy merchants merged several houses into a single impressive patrician residence centered around a courtyard. What began as separate buildings evolved into a stately urban complex that reflected Antwerp’s economic prosperity.
In 1698, a fourth wing was added in the classical Baroque style. The architecture betrays ambition: symmetry, pilasters, and refined ornamentation reveal the influence of French court culture under Louis XIV.
The earliest mention of the plot dates back to 1477. In the 16th and 17th centuries, wealthy merchants merged several houses into a single impressive patrician residence centered around a courtyard. What began as separate buildings evolved into a stately urban complex that reflected Antwerp’s economic prosperity.
In 1698, a fourth wing was added in the classical Baroque style. The architecture betrays ambition: symmetry, pilasters, and refined ornamentation reveal the influence of French court culture under Louis XIV.
Although the building today bears the names of the famous cartographers Gerardus Mercator and Abraham Ortelius, they never lived here. The name refers to its later use as the meeting place of the Antwerp Geographical Society—a tribute to their world-changing work.
After periods of decline, the house was designated a protected monument in 1946. Several restorations brought the building back to life. Between 2021 and 2023, it underwent a thorough renovation, respecting its historic character and preparing the complex for a new future.
Today, this exceptionally well-preserved city palace once again serves as a place of encounter, storytelling, and imagination.
After periods of decline, the house was designated a protected monument in 1946. Several restorations brought the building back to life. Between 2021 and 2023, it underwent a thorough renovation, respecting its historic character and preparing the complex for a new future.
Today, this exceptionally well-preserved city palace once again serves as a place of encounter, storytelling, and imagination.
The Cathedral, rebuilt in Lego
Our Lady’s Cathedral has dominated the Antwerp skyline for centuries. In the 16th century, it served as a landmark for ships entering the city. Today, a replica of it made from thousands of Lego bricks stands in the Mercator-Ortelius House.
What Mercator and Ortelius did with maps,
this model does with bricks: making the world understandable. Translating complexity into structure. Bringing order to chaos. It is not a toy. It is a contemporary interpretation of building, measuring, and visualizing.
What Mercator and Ortelius did with maps,
this model does with bricks: making the world understandable. Translating complexity into structure. Bringing order to chaos. It is not a toy. It is a contemporary interpretation of building, measuring, and visualizing.
THE PERFORMANCE
What can you expect?
A new experience in the heart of historic Antwerp
Six historic rooms bring Antwerp’s Golden Age to life
As you step into the Mercator-Ortelius House, you immediately sense that this is no ordinary visit. No display cases, no long informational signs: instead, you’re immersed in large-scale projections and immersive soundscapes that bring the sixteenth century to life in the halls of a protected historic monument. Using your personal audio guide, you’ll follow the story in Dutch, French, English, German, or Spanish, and in sixty minutes, you’ll walk through the port city’s most prosperous and turbulent years.
Room by room, the story of the city that was once the center of world trade unfolds. You’ll see how goods from every corner of the world filled the streets of Antwerp, listen to the brilliant cartographers who put the city on the map, and feel the impact of the art of printing, which allowed knowledge to circulate around the world at an unprecedented pace. Your journey ends in the oppressive atmosphere of the Iconoclastic Fury, as you stand face-to-face in the reception area with the finale of the experience: a monumental model of the Cathedral of Our Lady, built entirely from LEGO bricks.
Experience the 16th century as if you were there yourself.
Book your tickets today.