One of the Best-Preserved Abbey Sites in Flanders: Park Abbey

by Asli Tezcan comments

Park Abbey (Abdij van Park) is one of the best-preserved abbey sites in Flanders and the Netherlands. Norbertine monks have lived here since 1129. There is PARCUM museum and the house Polyphony or simply stroll through the grounds of the park with its tranquil lakes.

When you visit Abbey, you can see;

  • In the period of around 1100, the Duke of Brabant, or Godfried the Bearded, used the park as his hunting ground before giving it to the Norbertines. 
  • The tradition of communal life and pastoral work is now continued by a small group of Norbertines. 
  • The abbey boasts an extraordinary art collection, an unblemished interior, a library containing over 6,000 old prints and a well-preserved ancient archive. 
  • Around the abbey lie the walls and gate houses, the water mill, the mighty farm and the tithe barn. 
  • In the churchyard you can find the monuments of some famous people.

 

(Source: https://www.toerismevlaamsbrabant.be/en/producten/bezoeken/bezienswaardigheden/abdij-van-park/index.html ), photo by Aslı Tezcan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Leuven parks
Abdij van Park in Leuven