Thursday, June 6, 2013

Antwerpen Postcrossing Meeting

The last official wasn't the only Antwerpen card i've received in the last weeks. A few weeks ago, on May 18th, the city received a group of postcrossers, being one of the Raquel, who sent me this card showing the city's Town Hall.

© Uitg. Thill, N. V., Brussel
The City Hall of Antwerp, Belgium, stands on the western side of Antwerp's Grote Markt. Erected between 1561 and 1565 to the design of Cornelis Floris de Vriendt and several other architects and artists, this Renaissance building incorporates both Flemish and Italian influences.
The low arcaded ground story is of rusticated stone, and at one time housed little shops. Above are two stories with Doric and Ionic columns separating large mullioned windows, and a fourth story forming an open gallery.
The richly ornamented center section, which rises above the eaves in diminishing stages, holds female statues representing Justice, Prudence, and the Virgin Mary, and bears the coats of arms of the Duchy of Brabant, the Spanish Habsburgs, and the Margraviate of Antwerp. - in: wikipedia
Throughout most of the year, the main façade of the city hall is decorated with 87 flags. The central flags on the bottom row represent Antwerp, Flanders, Belgium, Europe and the United Nations. The other flags represent countries that are member of the European Union and nations that have a consulate in Antwerp. - in: http://www.aviewoncities.com/antwerp/cityhall.htm

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