Gent – End of year reception

Modernist Boekentoren and Rococo Hôtel Falligan

In 1933, Henri Van de Velde was commissioned to design a building for the Library and the Institutes of Art History, Veterinarian Studies and Pharmaceutical Sciences of Ghent University. Situated on the highest ground in the city, the site offered the architect a unique opportunity to give Ghent its “fourth tower” — not for the ringing of bells, but for books.
The 64 meters, 24 floors high concrete building, the Boekentoren (Books Tower), was designed as a university library, a function it still serves today. It houses over three million works, including books, magazines, manuscripts, architectural plans, maps and posters.

The Boekentoren has been a protected monument since 1 July 1992. Its  modernist architecture and the atmospheric belvedere that crowns the tower have given it iconic status over the decades. A bronze fox terrier by artist Greta van Puyenbroeck, based on an idea by Ghent photographer Michiel Hendryckx, stands atop the tower – intended to place the sublime character of this monumental building in perspective. The Boekentoren is a remarkable piece of modernist heritage.

Boekentoren ©UGent

Hotel Falligan is a classified and authentic city palace (hôtel particulier), built in 1755 on the medieval foundations of the former “Steen.” Its construction was the idea of Hector-Gabriel-Joseph Falligan, from a noble family from the Anjou region in France
The beautiful rococo interiors have mostly been preserved. A Parisian painter named Christophe Huet decorated a newly added room with magnificent murals in the 19th century.
It was sold publicly in 1804 to what became known as the “Royal Literary Society,” or in short the “Club Falligan.”

The immaculate condition of the building is partly due to the fact that there were only two owners during its 250-year history, which allowed the original rococo-style decoration and all of its furniture to remain in exceptional condition.
In 1815, the French king Louis XVIII stayed in this building during the ‘Hundred Days’ of Napoleon’s return.

Falligan hotel ©CFasseur

Programme

• 14:20 Arrival and meeting the guides (Eng./Nl)
• 14:30 Commented tour of the ‘Boekentoren’
• 16:30 Walk (10 minutes) from Rozier to ‘Kouter’, the central square where also the 19th-century opera house stands.
• 17:00 Reception at ‘Falligan’, Kouter, 172
• 19:00 End of reception

How to get there

by Public transport, from railroad station Gent-Sint-Pieters, take

•  either tram T1 (Gent Moscou) stop Gent Vogelmarkt > 10 min walk to Rozier
•  or bus route 55 (Zelzate) stop  Gent Heuvelpoort > 10 min walk to Rozier

By car – be aware that the city of Gent is a Low Emission Zone (LEZ) – Parking:

• Sint-Pietersplein (Sint-Pietersplein 65, 9000 Gent)
• Kouter (Kouterplein)
• Savaan (Savaanstraat 13, 9000 Gent)

Note

NTAB is an officially affiliated Supporter Group of the National Trust of England, Wales & Northern Ireland.

The fee for this outing includes a portion allocated to our annual donation to the National Trust.

The National Trust is internationally recognized as a leading organization in heritage conservation, setting the global standard in preserving historic places, beautiful landscapes and cultural treasures for generations to come.