PLANTIN-MORETUS MUSEUM

Dedicated to the history of printing from the ^15th to the ^18th century, this museum traces the life of the Plantin-Moretus family. After arriving in Antwerp as a bookbinder, the French humanist Christoffel Plantin became a printer in 1555 and set up his own business. His son-in-law, Jan Moretus, and his grandchildren expanded the family business in the ^17th and ^18th centuries. In 1876, Edouard Moretus sold the printing works and all its equipment to the City of Antwerp.
In addition to its superb period building and pretty interior garden, the museum showcases its splendid collections in 34 rooms. It boasts the world's only fully-equipped ^16th-century printing office, a ^17th-century press room, and 90 complete sets of lead type (including the only complete set of Garamont's original punches). You can also admire two of the world's oldest printing presses, still in working order! Also on display are old maps and maps of the world, as well as several paintings by Rubens, a family friend. Visitors can also wander through the publishing archives, as well as a library containing 25,000 volumes as precious as they are ancient.

The museum's masterpieces include two extremely rare and splendid copies of the Gutenberg Bible, including the only surviving copy of theIndex librorum prohibitorum printed before 1461. A real treasure trove. No wonder it's the first museum to be included on UNESCO's World Heritage List!