Botanical Garden of Brussels
The Botanical Garden of Brussels stands on Rue Royale in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, near the Northern Quarter financial district in Brussels. Its main building is a cultural complex and music venue known as Le Botanique.
It was founded in 1826 and partly designed by architect Tilman-François Suys. The main orangery (Le Botanique) is composed of a central rotunda with a dome, and two side aisles with windows at the ends.
After decades of financial uncertainty, the Belgian state bought the garden in 1870 and commissioned various fountains, electrical lighting, and an extensive program of sculpture that would both beautify the park and develop the country's public art and artists. Fifty-two sculptures were executed between 1894 and 1898, a project overseen by two well-known sculptors, Constantin Meunier and Charles van der Stappen. Some of the 43 sculptors involved include:
- Arthur Craco
- Victor De Haen
- Isidore De Rudder
- Albert Desenfans
- Julien Dillens
- Paul Du Bois
- Jules Lagae
- Léon Mignon
- Victor Rousseau
- Charles Samuel
- French sculptor François Rude
In 1938 most of the botanical resources were removed to the new site National Botanic Garden of Belgium in Meise on the outskirts of the city. The original garden now stands as a cultural center called Le Botanique, while its historical statues, and its remarkable collection of species of large trees, stands intact.
It can be accessed by the Botanique/Kruidtuin metro station.
Sources
- Belgium and Holland, including the grand-duchy of Luxembourg ..., Part 11 By Karl Baedeker (Firm)
- Frommer's Brussels and Bruges Day by Day By Mary Anne Evans, pg. 95
- Partially translated from French Wikipedia article accessed 8/31/10
