Old Civil Chancellery (Bruges)

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Facade of the old civil law office.
Image of Mrs. Justitia by Hendrick Pickery .

The Old Civil Chancellery ( Dutch : Oude Civiele Griffie ) is one of the oldest Renaissance buildings in Flanders . It is located on Burgplatz in Bruges between the Bruges Free Office and the town hall .

It was completed in 1537 and was the seat of the head of the civil court, who was one of the most important city officials. The facade was built entirely from natural stone and is richly decorated with sculptures. The bronze sculptures were made in 1883 by the Bruges sculptor Hendrik Pickery .

The building has been restored three times. The first restoration (1877-1881) was carried out under the direction of the city architect Louis Delacenserie . He restored or added sculptures, decorations and polychromy so that the building now shines again in the original glory of the 16th century. In 1980 the facades were cleaned after pre-curing. A scientific investigation carried out between 1993 and 1996 led to a third restoration in 2001. During the last restoration, an attempt was made to bring the building back to its original splendor.

The building was listed as a historical monument in 1942 and declared an immovable cultural asset in September 2009. The building is currently still in use by the Bruges City Council .

literature

  • Jeroen Cornilly: Monumentaal West-Vlaanderen. Bruges 2003, ISBN 9076297207
  • Marc Ryckaert: De gevels van het Brugse Vrije. In: Bruges the scone. 2017.

Coordinates: 51 ° 12 ′ 30.2 ″  N , 3 ° 13 ′ 39 ″  E