Diamond, jewellery and silver wear museum DIVA in Antwerp opened in 2018, merging the collections of the Antwerp Diamond Museum and the Sterckshof Silver Museum of the Province of Antwerp. In January 2021, I finally made time for a proper visit, with Oriol.
Situated on the Suikerrui, it’s on the Historic Antwerp sightseeing route for cruise tourists. So it’s very convenient.
DIVA is bigger than I thought. Several thematic rooms give you an overview of diamond, jewellery and silver wear fashions and techniques.
- The Wunderkammer. Your first steps inside DIVA’s house take you into her amazing Wunderkammer. In this contemporary interpretation of a chamber exhibiting a collection of curiosities, objects from every corner of the globe are brought together in a cocoon of luxury. Each object has a story to tell.
- The Atelier. In the next room you’ll learn how all these beautiful objects were made. The art of diamond-cutting and silversmithing is demonstrated in the middle of a timeless atelier.
- The International Trading Room. A multimedia globe shows why Antwerp was and still is the diamond centre of the world. Projected trade routes illustrate how diamonds have made their way to Antwerp for 550 years. Screens and short films provide a wealth of additional information.
- The Dining Room showcases accessories for fine dining.
- The Boudoir showcases mostly 19th and 20th jewelry.
- The Vault introduces you to the struggle against counterfeits.
Then there’s the temporary exhibition. In January, it was ‘The Jeweller’s Art – Revolutionary jewellery from the 1960s & 1970s‘.
An an experience
DIVA provides heaps of information and exhibits many real objects. The ECC tennisracket is the real one. That’s quite exceptional. So you get value for money and you get to spend a few hours inside.
The brochure with information is not so clear. The main rooms are divided in number for walls or panels and each panel numbers objects. But those panels aren’t always next to each other. It’s all a bit confusing to grasp.
Hopefully it’s only a temporary corona thing.
Antwerp’s Museum Plantin-Moretus will close its doors from 3 August 2026 for a four-month renovation as it prepares to unveil a completely redesigned permanent exhibition…
Antwerp’s Museum Plantin-Moretus will close its doors from 3 August 2026 for a four-month renovation as it prepares to unveil a completely redesigned permanent exhibition…
2026 marks the nineteenth (19th) edition of Antwerp Pride. From Wednesday 5 to Sunday 9 August, Antwerp in Belgium will once again be taken over…
2026 marks the nineteenth (19th) edition of Antwerp Pride. From Wednesday 5 to Sunday 9 August, Antwerp in Belgium will once again be taken over…
A record-breaking 12,000-plus people visited museums and cultural venues across Antwerp during the 20th edition of Museumnacht or Museum Night on 1 August 2026, as…
A record-breaking 12,000-plus people visited museums and cultural venues across Antwerp during the 20th edition of Museumnacht or Museum Night on 1 August 2026, as…
A record-breaking 12,000-plus people visited museums and cultural venues across Antwerp during the 20th edition of Museumnacht or Museum Night on 1 August 2026, as…
A record-breaking 12,000-plus people visited museums and cultural venues across Antwerp during the 20th edition of Museumnacht or Museum Night on 1 August 2026, as…
In early March 2026, Frank invited me to join a behind the scenes tour of the Antwerp opera house. The place now houses Opera Ballet…
In early March 2026, Frank invited me to join a behind the scenes tour of the Antwerp opera house. The place now houses Opera Ballet…
Antwerp will celebrate its 38th Open Monuments Day on Sunday 13 September 2026, with a programme that puts not only historic buildings but also the…
Antwerp will celebrate its 38th Open Monuments Day on Sunday 13 September 2026, with a programme that puts not only historic buildings but also the…
Around 200,000 people attended this year’s Bollekesfeest in central Antwerp, with 36 live bands and DJs performing across the Grote Markt and Groenplaats. The three-day…
British artist Monster Chetwynd will return to Antwerp’s Middelheim Museum next month for a weekend of performances, workshops and interactive activities marking the final weekend…
Museums of the City of Antwerp and heritage institutions welcomed almost 550,000 visitors during the 2026 summer months, despite several museums being temporarily closed for…
Three new exhibitions will open at the Antwerp photography museum FOMU on 18 September 2026, bringing together the work of acclaimed Mexican photographer Graciela Iturbide,…
Antwerp’s contemporary art museum M HKA is moving to a shared leadership model, with a general director and an artistic director jointly responsible for the…
The Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp (KMSKA) will present a major retrospective of Belgian artist Philip Aguirre y Otegui from 3 October 2026 to…
The Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp (KMSKA) will present a major retrospective of Belgian artist Philip Aguirre y Otegui from 3 October 2026 to…
More than 100 Antwerp residents and city enthusiasts have photographed the city with disposable cameras for ‘Antwerp Unfiltered‘, a free exhibition opening at Het Steen…
The District of Antwerp will mark the 450th anniversary of the Spanish Fury in November with ‘Furie!‘, a large-scale commemoration combining history, culture and live…
The District of Antwerp will mark the 450th anniversary of the Spanish Fury in November with ‘Furie!‘, a large-scale commemoration combining history, culture and live…
One year after the decision to scrap plans for a new building, Antwerp’s contemporary art museum M HKA is setting out a new course for…
One year after the decision to scrap plans for a new building, Antwerp’s contemporary art museum M HKA is setting out a new course for…
June 2024: Oscar and I meet in person for the first time, in London. September 2025: I visit Oscar in Denver, Colorado. October 2025: by…
The Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp (KMSKA) is placing Belgian abstract artist Guy Vandenbranden (1926–2014) in the wider context of the European avant-garde in…
The Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp (KMSKA) is placing Belgian abstract artist Guy Vandenbranden (1926–2014) in the wider context of the European avant-garde in…