Pieter Paul Rubens

Pieter Paul Rubens stands in the centre of Antwerp’s Groenplaats, a lively square beside the Cathedral of Our Lady. The bronze figure rises above life size on a tall blue-hardstone pedestal. Willem Geefs shows Rubens upright, with his left foot forward and his right arm lowered. A cloak crosses his shoulder, while a sword, medallion, and tilted hat present him as a nobleman and diplomat.

The palette at his feet identifies the painter, while white marble panels and a Latin inscription complete the neoclassical pedestal. Antwerp commissioned the monument for the two-hundredth anniversary of Rubens’s death, and the bronze version appeared in 1843. Financial difficulties delayed the work after a temporary plaster figure stood in the square. The planned bronze figures, coat of arms, and laurel frieze never joined the finished structure. An iron fence once surrounded the monument, but the open square now connects it with cafés, shops, and sightseeing routes.

Groenplaats served as Antwerp’s main cemetery until the late eighteenth century, and its old nickname survives in the square’s character. The statue replaced a large crucifix and remains a meeting point for views across the surrounding historic buildings. Look down to find the palette, then look up to the inscription that dedicates Rubens to his city.