Plantin–Moretus Museum

The Plantin-Moretus Museum is a museum and historic printing workshop in Antwerp that preserves the seventeenth- and sixteenth-century premises of the Plantin and Moretus printing families. The original press was established in the mid-16th century and the site is recognised for its outstanding survival of an early modern printing business.

The printing business was founded by Christophe Plantin in the 16th century and continued by the Moretus family for generations, operating as a commercial press and bookshop. In the 19th century the house and collections were preserved and converted into a museum to keep the workshop, archives and family library intact.

The museum sits in Antwerp’s old town in Flanders, within the city’s historic core and close to other central cultural sites. It is easily reached from the city centre and is part of Antwerp’s network of museums and heritage buildings.

• UNESCO World Heritage: Recognised by UNESCO in 2005 for being one of the best-preserved early modern printing houses with original equipment and archival material.
• Visitor tip: Guided tours and close-up views of original hand-presses are the best way to understand historic printing techniques; allow 1-2 hours for the core exhibits.

What to See #

• Printing workshop: Located across several connected 16th- and 17th-century townhouses, the former printing workshop preserves original hand-presses, composing rooms and storage used by the Plantin and Moretus families; the workshop contains authentic printing equipment and specimens from the press's operating period.
• House and library: The family residence and period rooms display domestic interiors and a historic library that retain original fittings and bookbinding equipment from the Plantin-Moretus firm.
• Archive and collections: The museum holds the printing archives and collections of printed matter and typographic material associated with the Plantin and Moretus families and their press operations from the 16th and 17th centuries.