Plantin-Moretus Museum

The Plantin-Moretus Museum is a museum in Antwerp, Belgium honouring the famous printers Christoffel Plantijn and Jan Moretus. It is located in their former residence and printing establishment, Plantin Press, at the Friday Market.

History

The printing company was founded in the 16th century by Christoffel Plantijn. After his death it was owned by his son-in-law Jan Moretus.

In 1876 Edward Moretus sold the company to the city of Antwerp. One year later the public could visit the living areas and the printing presses. In 2002 the museum was nominated as UNESCO World Heritage Site and in 2005 it was inscribed onto the World Heritage list.

The Plantin-Moretus Museum possesses an exceptional collection of typographical material. Not only does it house the two oldest surviving printing presses in the world and complete sets of dies and matrices, it also has an extensive library, a richly decorated interior and the entire archives of the Plantin business, which were inscribed on UNESCO's Memory of the World Programme Register in 2001 in recognition of their historical significance.

Collection

Title page of a edition of Rembert Dodoens Cruydt-Boeck edited by Jan Moretus.

a Bible in five languages: Biblia Polyglotta (1568-1573)

Thesaurus Teutoniae Linguae

a geographical book: Theatrum Orbis Terrarum made by Abraham Ortelius

a book describing herbs: Cruydeboeck made by Rembert Dodoens

an anatomical book made by Andreas Vesalius and Joannes Valverde

a book about decimal numbers from Simon Stevin

a 36 line Gutenberg Bible

paintings and drawings by Peter Paul Rubens

the study of humanist Justus Lipsius and many of his works.