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 will celebrate fashion in all its facets in 2026, marking the 40th anniversary of the international breakthrough of the Antwerp Six with a major…
The visitor numbers for Antwerp‘s municipal museums have been tallied. More than 2 million visitors once again found their way to the exhibitions, permanent collections,…
The Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp or Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten Antwerpen (KMSKA) closed 2025 with over 570,000 visitors, a new record. The…
From 6 February to 17 May 2026, the Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp or Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten Antwerpen (KMSKA) presents ‘The Fall…
Antwerp recorded another exceptional tourism year in 2025, welcoming a record number of visitors and confirming its position as one of Belgium’s leading city destinations.…
The Rubens House museum in Antwerp is taking a significant step in the museum’s ambitious renovation. Following an international architectural competition, architects Origin & Happel…
The Rubens House museum in Antwerp is taking a significant step in the museum’s ambitious renovation. Following an international architectural competition, architects Origin & Happel…
Visitors will once again be able to climb the iconic cathedral tower in Antwerp, as the city launches a new programme combining heritage, music and…
The garden of the Rubens House will once again transform into a spring spectacle in April and May, when rare historic tulips and other early…
Antwerp will host a European première this autumn when Cirque du Soleil presents its festive theatre production ‘’Twas the Night Before…‘ at the Stadsschouwburg. The…
From 12 to 15 March 2026, the Leienpaleis in Antwerp hosts a major exhibition dedicated to the Dutch artist and musician Herman Brood, marking 25…
The Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp or M HKA opens its new exhibition season today with a programme focused on censorship, artistic freedom and political…
The Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp or M HKA opens its new exhibition season today with a programme focused on censorship, artistic freedom and political…
On 20 March 2026, Antwerp‘s photography museum FOMU will open four new exhibitions exploring themes ranging from race and power to family history, pop culture…
On Saturday 21 March, Museum Plantin-Moretus welcomes spring with a new exhibition filled with beautiful botanical imagery. ‘The Plants of Plantin‘ brings together five centuries…