Poldermuseum

Poldermuseum occupies a former rusk bakery in Lillo, Antwerp, among the polder villages surrounding the city. It traces daily life in Wilmarsdonk, Oorderen, Oosterweel and Lillo from the late nineteenth century onwards. Hundreds of objects and agricultural tools show how local people worked, furnished their homes and marked important occasions.

In 1959, chaplain Jan Baptist Eelen began collecting furniture, paintings, statues and everyday objects from threatened villages. Antwerp’s port expansion eventually erased much of their physical presence. The collection opened in 1963 and now fills thirty-four rooms in its Lillo home. Historic interiors, a century-old classroom, a grocery shop, a regional pub and wartime memories carry the story forward.

An antique hearse stands beside a reconstructed mourning room, giving one tradition an especially tangible form. Paintings by Nicasius de Keyser and Albert de Vree add another view of the region. Children can follow a scavenger hunt through the rooms and find a surprise in Pol’s treasure chest.