Blackbird, beer and Elgar too.

Bourgogne brewery bar at the end of the tour

Riviera weather this last week or so and the luxury of the terrace door always wide open to the inviting, plant-filled space beyond. I had forgotten a little treat which I enjoyed last summer, though this year, it is in more profusion. A single blackbird has taken to frequent song-filled visits to my terrace wall and oh, the pleasure! There is a sweetness and ripeness to the melody which surely the nightingale does not possess; I can hear him, when he calls, in the kitchen, rich, mellow notes tumbling out, indeed, rolling out so loudly, so profusely, so fluidly, from the small yellow beak. Twice today I heard the song but the stone parapet was empty; eventually I spotted him, far higher than my terrace, singing without restraint, with a full-throated joy, on the top of the Flemish gable on the Zwartezusters’ hospital nearby. Can elderly delight be further embellished? I think not! One week after I began to write the paragraph above, I can report that the sweet-sounding songster has definitely given up my terrace and much prefers the aerial view from one or other of the top shelves on the Flemish gable of the hospital next-door. Happily enough, the notes cascade still into my flat and so I continue to receive the gift as if intended for me alone!!

An old British friend from America, here for several too-short days, is interested in beer and breweries so we visited the Bourgogne de Flandres brewery which has a gorgeous terrace overlooking the Dijver. It re-appeared about two years ago though it is an old Bruggean brewery which left despite its long association with the town. Bourgogne de Flandres has existed since 1911 when it was brewed by the Van Houtryve Family. In 1957, production was taken over by the Verhaeghe Brewery which would later on, produce the Duchesse de Bourgogne. Since the early 1990's, Bourgogne de Flandres has been brewed by Timmerman’s Brewery and the re-introduction of the Bourgogne des Flandres brewery to Brugge seems to have been a special project for John Martin, CEO of the eponymous brewery group.

View of the canal and the Dijver from the Bourgogne terrace

Our visit to the brewery was most interesting but also amazing in the simplicity of the effort for visitors. There were numerous electronic points at which to connect to hear a commentary appropriate to the stage in the beer-making process being observed; the total feel was not of an industrial process at all, but of a clean, almost silent commercial operation. It was really impressive and enjoyable and perhaps the best part was the finale; to sit on the canal-side terrace to sip the beer and watch the hordes of tourists in boats, carriages and on foot, streaming past. Embarrassingly, I already knew that I didn’t like the sweetness of the Bourgogne, a free drink of which was on offer at the end of the tour, so I opted for a Timmerman’s which sadly, was not free but was, nonetheless, delicious!

On Sunday afternoon, culture of a different stripe! To the Concertgebouw to listen to the Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Nicolas Altstaedt, a well-known German cellist. The first half was wonderful; Altstaedt playing Wagner's Tannhauser Overture and Elgar's Cello Concerto. The second half was also blissful; the Enigma Variations. In fact, after numerous encores, the conductor, Martyn Brabbins, orchestrated some synchronised clapping from the audience which was great fun, putting smiles on faces and causing strangers in the audience to chat as they left the auditorium.

Nicolas Altstaedt

Bourgogne Footnote.


Bourgogne de Flandres is a special type of brown beer formed by mixed fermentation combining a selection of mixed lambic [spontaneous fermentation] and a brown beer of high fermentation aged in oak barrels.


Apologies for the eccentric spacing in the last two paragraphs. Cause, unknown; solution, unknown.

Cafe Adriaan

In fact, not Café but Coffeebar Adriaan.

En route home, tired and ready for a coffee, I dropped into Cafe Adriaan, near the Theatre, on Adriaan Willaertsstraat, where I have been with friends a couple of times before. I admire the spaciousness there and the lovely wall-end display cabinet with various utensils from the past, like an old coffee grinder, lovingly collected. I casually picked up an information card in the window near me, to find a great deal of information in Dutch, about Adriaan Willaerts after whom the place, and the street, is named. I was intrigued enough, Early Music fan that I am, to discover more about Adriaan of whom I knew nothing.

Adriaan Willaerts 1490-1562

He was born in Roeselare not far from Brugge in 1490 and went to Paris originally to study law though, following his interests and talent, switched to music, eventually studying with Jean Mouton, principal composer of the French Royal Chapel. In 1515 he entered the service of Cardinal Ippolito 1 d’Este di Ferrara and travelled widely in Europe in that capacity. After Ippolito’s death in 1520 Willaerts joined the court of Duc Alfonso di Ferrara, becoming a member of the court chapel until 1525.

Andrea Gritti, Doge of Venice

His most important appointment came two years later when he was appointed Maestro di Capella of St Mark’s in Venice. The music there had languished under his predecessor, Pietro de Fossis, but the Venetian Doge, Andrea Gritti had recognised Adriaan's abilities and chosen him, determined to elevate the standard of music in San Marco to its former glory. From 1527 until his death in 1562 Willaerts retained this highly influential post, attracting composers from all of Europe to study with him, burnishing his reputation with his output of sacred music, particularly motets, and composing many madrigals, a secular form much admired. He was considered a Flemish madrigalist composer of the first rank and became the most influential musician in Europe between the death of Josquin and the time of Palestrina.

Adriaan was reputedly the inventor of the antiphonal style of choral song. It seems to have been a practical solution to the architectural quirk of there being two choir lofts in San Marco’s, one on each side of the main altar, each with an organ. He simply divided the choir into two equal sections, using them both antiphonally and simultaneously. This innovation met with instant success and created a strong fashion, followed by his successors, of cultivating this antiphonal choral style which led to the polychoral style of the Venetian school. In fact, in 1550 Willaerts published his Salmi spezzati, antiphonal settings of the Psalms, the first polychoral work of the Venetian school. This tradition of writing works for contrapuntal choirs, thus established, was continued throughout the 17th century.

San Marco, Venice, interior

[Antiphonal/ Polychoral: two, four part choirs sing church music alternately, occasionally in combination, in two separate spatial areas.

Polyphonic/contrapuntal: the weaving together of two or more, equally important melodic lines, to fit harmoniously.
Begun by Willaerts, and a typical feature of the late Renaissance, it led directly to the formation of the Baroque style. The two separate choirs were often referred to as cori spezzati= separate choirs.]

Willaerts was thus a significant figure in sixteenth century music and his legacy remains influential today. His fame was widespread when he lived; less so beyond the world of musica barocca today though this little blog seeks to address that in a small way.

What an interesting and informative time I have had following the trail of Adriaan Willaerts about whom I knew nothing! As has been often remarked, ‘One can take the girl out of teaching, but not the teaching out of the girl!’ Sometimes a quest is irresistible and usually, rewarding.

Triennale 2018

Boarded up but still beautiful

Locked but loved!

I walked down Pottenmakersstraat today, linking Ezelstraat and Vlamingstraat, and was again shocked to see access to the darling little garden inside the ruined house, was blocked. It has been closed on orders from the Town Hall, no doubt for security reasons. Certainly, a tall, free-standing, free-leaning wall inside, riven by a huge crack, has always looked unsafe! So it initially looked very woebegone but today, the self-selected Gardener-in-Chief who lives nearby I believe, had been hard at work and the closed front looks delightful. Obviously the garden-carer takes her floral responsibilities seriously. I imagine the stadtuintje [the little town garden] won’t be quite the tourist attraction that it was when anyone could wander inside to see the sky above, and the containers of herbs and flowers below the leaning wall. It really was a magical little oasis which caught the eye of all who passed; a special place where a ruined house was encouraged to bloom and passers-by felt an immediate empathy with the defiance of both plants and gardener!

Braving the water!

And so to Triennale 2018. I had a young friend, Agnieska from Poland, staying for the weekend and off we marched towards the opening ceremony of the Triennale and the attendant free beer! It all took place on the Coupure with loud music, an almost frenziedly excited announcer and eventually Renaat Landuyt the Burgemeester, making yet another
little speech. Once the metaphorical ribbon had been cut, a large contingent from a local swimming club, bravely, and possibly foolhardily, leapt into the canal while the hundreds of spectators, carefully keeping their collective distance from the cold, cold water, applauded and quietly queued in the warm sun for their beers. There was a lovely atmosphere of goodwill and community involvement which I notice these Bruggean events always seem to foster. It was so pleasant to be among the crowd, which was physically constricting while being psychologically relaxing and warmly enveloping. The whole affair was comfortably life-enhancing.

Undignified pose during the earlier assembly on
Jan Van Eyckplein.

Aga and I then started to follow some of the Triennale route to locate other installations. The world and his wife had a similar idea but walking along canals even [or perhaps especially] with many others, often under shady trees, proved to be a delightful shared experience. We had already seen my favourite artistic effort which is in Jan Van Eyckplein, near my place. It is a wonderful and enormous blue whale in mid-leap from the canal. He is made entirely of white and blue plastic refuse harvested from the sea off Hawaii and makes a huge and unmistakable statement about human pollution of the planet.

On Saturday evening, we had had an early evening beer on the terrace of de Swaene, in the sun along the Groenerei and chatted to Kathy and Terry, two visitors to Brugge at the next table. We were, in fact, en route to the vernissage at the Adornes Domein of Sisters’Art, an exhibition of paintings and sculptures so, on an impulse, we took along our new friends! We were all so amused, on arrival, by another guest at the exhibition opening, from my Thursday evening gathering as it happens, getting quite hot under the collar that the refuse for the Blue Whale was reclaimed from the sea off Hawaii and not off Ostende or Blankenberghe!! Someone explained that the volume of plastic waste in the seas off Hawaii is almost enough to provide a solid walking platform hence the choice.

The current Triennale’s theme is The Liquid City, referring to the present era in Brugge as one of transition; everything is changing, unstable but also open and collaborative. It also suggests that the canals that criss-cross and encircle the city are a metaphor for the liquidity of ideas and dialogue that permeate the modern world and which have grown from the economic and cultural prosperity of  mediaeval Brugge. After all this high cultural endeavour, I was interested to talk today to a lovely man who works here for around half of the year; definitely not a Bruggeling who said, ‘I am SO angry about the cost of this Triennale. The installations look good but the money, surely, could have

Floating Island off the Potterierei

been more wisely spent!’ I’m not too sure about that; the interest has been phenomenal so far with tourist numbers hugely increased at this opening weekend. And tourism is, after all, Brugge’s life blood.

I have quite forgotten to mention that the Triennale involves contemporary art works and installations around, by and on the water, dotted around the city from May 5 to September 16, embodying the ideas under the title of Vloeibare Stad, Liquid City. I mentioned that the Blue Whale is my favourite
installation but perhaps joint favourite is The Floating Island actually on the canal along the Potterierei near the Snaggardbrug. It is dreamy, especially when one is on it. The capacious structure is lined with white ropes, described as elastic nets which can support a body leaning over the water or lying in a hammock; they are also aesthetically pleasing. So visitors can lean, lie, sit while viewing the canal and beyond, or resting or dreaming. The Korean architectural practice OBBA, together with Dertien12, a Bruges architect's firm, have created additional public space within the Egg. They have also succeeded in providing a white area, interspersed with fluid shadows beneath the sun, which creates a feeling of peaceful solitude.

Another triumphant swimmer last Sunday.

Agnieska, floating.

Section of The Blue Whale, reflecting on his

new context.

Dante's Memorial Stone

I have often noticed a stone plaque commemorating Dante Alighieri on a relatively modest, modern building on the corner of Academiestraat and Vlamingstraat, near where I live. I have equally often told myself to find out why it is there but action came there none. Till now, gentle reader! And that is because I have discovered the explanation in a super Art Guide for Bruges by Fernand Bonneure published in 1985. Lent to me by a friend some time ago, I have only dipped into it occasionally, long enough to respect the cultural authenticity of its author. But obviously not long enough to read it properly!

Bruges rather enjoys being referred to as The Venice of the North but I had not realised that the 

 The Grand Canal, Venice

Republic of Venice had colonies in London, Southampton and Bruges, connected by their own shipping service by the beginning of the 14^th century! In Ter Oude Beurze, opposite the site of the present plaque, was the headquarters of the Venetian contingent in Brugge. The Spanish traveller, Pero Tafur, was the first to compare Venice to Brugge after having visited both cities in 1438. In a story of his, published in Madrid in 1874, he wrote, “It appears to me, and many will agree with me, that there is more business activity in Bruges than in Venice. In the whole western world there is no such large trading centre like Bruges though England is doing some business too. It is said that at some moments as much as seven hundred ships a day leave the port of Bruges. In Venice, however, also a rich city of course, only the inhabitants of the city itself are involved in the trade….. For many regions Bruges seems to be the appropriate port and the best market where all these goods can be traded.”

Ter Oude Beurze, third on left; Florentijnse Loge with

four decorative towers, facing.

Marcus Gerard map 1562.

Opposite the Venetian Ter Beurze was the hanse-house of Florence. On the famous Marcus Gerards’ map of Brugge from 1562, on the site of the present corner-house displaying the plaque, is shown a splendid, four-turreted building. This was built by Florentine traders in 1430 and was used by the Florentine colony in Brugge until it left after the silting up of the sea route. It was sold in 1637. It is now a restaurant, appropriately De Florentijnen, and the Vlamingstraat facade is decorated with Dante’s memorial stone, placed there in 1984 after its original place in the Markt, at the foot of the Belfry, proved to be too attractive a place for tourists who were wearing away the chiselled ‘in memoriam’ letters. It was presented to the city of Brugge by the Societa Dante Alighieri Comitato di Roma.

Dante was, and is, Florence’s favourite and most famous of sons, a poet of huge stature and significance. The three lines from his Inferno, on his Bruges memorial stone:

 Dante Alighieri
1265-1321

"Quale I Fiamminghi tra Guzzante e Bruggia

Temendo 'i fiotto che inver lor s’avventa 

Fanno lo schermo, perche ‘l mar si fuggia." 

[Just like the Flemings between White Sand and Bruges

who, fearing the flood which is making them build

a dam, protection from which the sea flees.]

and the further mention of Bruges in Canto 15 in Inferno together with Douwaai, (Douai), Ghent and Rijsel (Lille), show Dante using these cities as symbols of power, greatness and authority. In fact, it re-affirms the fame and power of Bruges within Europe in the beginning of the 14^th century.

In 1985 a Societa Dante Alighieri Comitato di Bruggia was founded to give lectures and concerts on Italian culture and provide Italian courses. I can find a nod to its continuing existence but nothing showing any contemporary activity.

Ter Oude Beurze still stands, majestically

surveying Vlamingstraat and

Academiestraat

Lohengrin and The St George's Day Raid 1918

A week full of activity after Palermo to get the system working again. Super luncheon party chez Magda, irreverent member of my Thursday evening group, followed by the arrival of three of the much-loved Cologne Mafia on Wednesday with the immediate purpose of taking me to the Brussels Opera to see Wagner’s Lohengrin, my first Wagner opera. The occasion was splendid in the lovely

Enjoying the interval at tbe Brussels Opera House

19th century Opera House with a theatre full of people apparently all drinking champagne [and beer!] in the interval. I loved the way the stage was managed, chiefly by a huge rotating rotunda which was multi-purpose in incorporating a large choir when needed; gave space for other characters and scenes to be introduced, thus adding depth and movement to several interludes; and finally provided a half-hidden landscape for secret or overheard conversations. A brilliant device. The music was, well, Wagner; imperious, tempestuous, gracious, soul-searing; not easy, not straightforward; often, not comfortable but wildly varied and vividly emotional. The whole concept came together harmoniously with superb musicianship
[large and excellent orchestra; wonderful singers]and for me, after my apprehension about attending a Wagnerian opera, it was a spectacular success. A night to be remembered.

NOT the bougainvillea but the resident rhododendron
in full floral mode.

Between outings and naps for refreshment purposes, I repaired to the terrace, shameful under the sun in its winter neglect. But solo efforts, greatly enhanced by sterling work from the Boyz, soon enhanced the initial shabby appearance of my little estate. It is still not finished but a work well in progress with the addition today, Wednesday, of a tall Bougainvillea in bright pink. A little South of France ambitious perhaps but hopeful!

Colossal defensive U-boat bunker, Brugge harbour

Roger and June who pass through Bruges every year or so, entertained me to a fab lunch at de Belegde Boterham on Tuesday when we took the opportunity to ‘catch up!’ while enjoying creative and delicious food.

I took their advice later to go round the exhibition, The Battle for the North Sea, in the Provinciaal Hof in the Markt, which had started, unsung, on St George’s Day, April 23. The Provinciaal Hof is the 19^th century Gothic Revival building in the Markt and was from where the Admiral of the Marinekorps Flandern, Ludwig von Schroder, co-ordinated and organised the German defence of the Belgian Coast during the First World War. The Provinciaal Hof was, in effect, the HQ of the Imperial German Navy in occupied Flanders. Brugge was occupied on 14 October 1914 and the Admiralty in Berlin realised at once that the harbours of Zeebrugge, Ostende and especially Brugge, were potentially ideal U-boat bases. Located twelve kilometres inland, Brugge harbour offered protection to the small yet formidable submarine units which used the canals leading to Ostende and Zeebrugge to reach the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Eventually, a colossal concrete bunker holding 8 U-boats was constructed in Brugge harbour.

The U-boats achieved increasingly spectacular results during 1914/15; indeed by May 1 1918,

Some of the 16 British soldiers captured during the Zeebrugge 

Raid. Here, awaiting certain death, they thought,  but when the

Germans arrived to capture them, they only took photographs 

before imprisoning them!

German U-boats had sunk 2,50100 tonnes of Allied shipping, totalling 2554 vessels. It was in response to this overwhelming destruction, all other defensive attempts to protect British ships having failed, that a plan was formed to disable the sea lock in Zeebrugge through which all German shipping had to pass. Simultaneous attacks on Zeebrugge and Ostende harbours would scuttle British ships filled with concrete to block the entrance to both harbours. The exhibition tells the U-boat history in Flanders, and of the highly risky and ambitious St George’s Day Raid on April 23rd 1918 which ended in only partial success for the Allies, enabling both sides to claim victory.

Torpedo hoisted aboard in Brugge harbour.

There are splendid contemporary photographs, charts and memorabilia in the exhibition, both of the history of U-boats and of the Raid itself, and, in Room 1, most poignantly, there are photographs and details of the eleven British men awarded Victoria Crosses that day, one hundred years ago. The number awarded from one battle on one day was historically unprecedented and this is the first time in 100 years that the eleven VC medals have been gathered together. Rather sadly, for the 'other ranks' there was actually a ballot of names for the V.C. awards, there being up to 100 men who were considered to have acted sufficiently bravely to merit one. There is a letter to one man whose name did not feature in the eleven, informing him that he was being considered.

Last photo of UB-29, missing 13 Dec 1916.

Discovered Aug 2017 off Ostende, the best-preserved U-boat relic.

22 men remained on board; now respected as a war grave.

All this history ... and ice cream too.

Roman amphitheatre, Segesta

Just re-acclimatising myself to Beloved Brugge post my Palermo interlude. And what an interlude! The images are swirling around my mind but the ones which still most impress are of the stunning archaeological remains and the wondrous mosaics. Of course there is more to Palermo than these but the numerous UNESCO heritage sites are quite extraordinary and probably, unique.

The Little Hunt; mosaic from Piazza Armerina

The mid-12th century Duomo in Monreale is perhaps the overwhelming and most awe-inspiring sight I saw. Ten centuries after its creation [and built in ten years only in the mid 1170s] it retains its golden sheen and its fluid, pictorial narratives to dazzle modern tourists as much as it inspired awe and exultation in the minds and spirits of early mediaeval man.

Chamber of the Ten Maidens aka

Room of the Bikini Girls.

But, tying for first place is also the stunning Roman villa complex at Piazza Armerina. Constructed along four terraces on four levels, in three phases, in the early 4^th century A.D. for a highly-placed official or aristocrat, quite probably the Governor of Sicily, the monumental staircase, enormous halls and passages, gymnasium, complex bathing areas and private apartments, speak of luxury and wealth. There are the remains of 62 rooms but the most thrilling and well-preserved sights are of the copious number of mosaic pavements. The villa was inhabited for around 150 years and was finally abandoned after a huge mudslide in 1170 and despite the visible remains of taller structures, the area was farmed and the treasures below, chiefly forgotten until the discovery of some mosaics in the nineteenth century although the first professional excavation was not until 1929.

 There were more UNESCO World Heritage sites from the amazing Valle dei Tempi near Agrigento

Greek Temple, Segesta

to the tiny simple church of San Cataldo in Palermo with its Norman Arab architectural echoes, and then the majesty of the Capella Palatina. All variously impressive in beauty and narrative, and also in pointing to the layered history of Sicily with its thousands of years of conquest by different civilisations.
Ancient Greek temples, Roman theatres, Arabic street plans, Byzantine/Norman churches; all reminders of past occupations which contributed to the multi-cultural jigsaw that is Sicily.

Teatro Massimo, third biggest Opera House in Europe.

But there was also the delight of a guided tour of the Teatro Massimo and a performance of the Wizard of Oz for approximately1000 small children bubbling over with excitement. And the Teatro Argento, one of the puppet theatres with its magical marionettes and bloodthirsty dramas. Plus the great street food and the outdoor incredibly noisy, full-on markets. All not to be missed!

Mosaic, Monreale

Obviously there are informative guide books to be read and the danger to be avoided of forcing people to view one’s holiday snaps but I just had to write a little about Palermo;




chaotic, frenetic, dirty and litter-strewn, poor but fiercely independent, exuberantly and deliberately anti-any-and-all regulations, hugely vibrant and open and welcoming. Sicily is even more Italian than Italy I would say though, in truth, the Sicilians differ greatly, historically and culturally, from the Italians. In fact, Sicily feels unique and Palermo, its capital city, captures the essence of the island in all its quixotic glory and in spite of its many burdens.

Changing the scenery at the Teatro Argento dei Pupi. 

Haute Lecture: Colard Mansion

Reputedly, a drawing of Colard Mansion, right lower corner

Shorn of the over-long Dutch classes and the over-arduous exertion required to meet those demands, feelings of freedom broke out yesterday, Friday 30 March, and at long last I had the time to go to the Groeninge Museum to see the much-advertised exhibition on a famous resident of Brugge, the scribe, translator, eventual printer Colard Mansion, resident here from 1457-1484. Nothing is known of his birthplace or early life nor of his life after 1484 when he completely disappeared from the known world! The priests of Sint Donaas allegedly remarked, 'Colard Mansion is gevlucht!' [Colard Mansion is fled!] at his sudden disappearance in 1484, and without paying the rent due on his atelier in Sint Donaas. The first printed reference to his presence here was in 1457 but it is likely that he lived here before that date.

A page from Colard Mansion's

Ovide Metamorphose

I found the exhibition thrilling, with an impressive range of Mansion exhibits gathered from across Europe and the U.S. The innovative audio guide really enhanced the knowledge available to the lay person but the many stars of the show, huge illustrated Mansion books and manuscripts, were dazzling. The experts who put together the material, headed by Ludo Vandamme from Bruges Library, assembled a variety of manuscripts, illuminated incunabulae and rare prints and books to tell the most important part of the Mansion narrative. [Incunabula, a new word to me, refers to early printed material before 1500.] Perhaps the most stunning of the Mansion exhibits are the Boccaccio and the Ovide Metamorphose, both richly extraordinary in the majesty of the concept, size and realisation.

William Caxton

Brugge in the mid fifteenth century was an international economic and cultural hub. Indeed, late mediaeval Bruges was the market par excellence for fashionable and high-quality products and with the active patronage of Philip the Good, followed inevitably by the aristocratic elite, there were unprecedented opportunities for scribes, miniaturists, printers and bookbinders in Bruges. Mansion began as a scholarly scribe, a skilled copyist, but one document shows that by 1457, the first mention of his name suggests that he already held a certain position in the administrative networks of the city. This experience plus his history of producing richly- illuminated manuscripts, were perfectly timed to coincide with the appearance of book printing, stemming from the revolutionary and iconic Gutenberg Bible in 1455 printed in Mainz by Johannes Gutenberg.

A page from Mansion's Boccaccio.

In actuality, a huge and

sumptuous volume.

Mansion produced illuminated manuscripts only for the luxury market but the advent of printing enabled him to begin to move into luxury book production in the 1470s. He collaborated with William Caxton and produced a Book of Hours in 1475/6, for the English market, long a magnet for Bruges' manuscripts. Soon after this, Caxton returned to England and what had begun as a quest for Mansion into the mechanical production of manuscripts, moved into a fully-fledged luxury book production business. Mansion developed into an assured and courageous entrepreneur, deftly developing his printing and publishing business while remaining an admired scribe, comfortable with Latin, firmly established in a French-speaking world with its strong connection to the wealthy Burgundian court and drawing almost exclusively on a French language body of material for his books.

Caxton served as Governor to the English Nation of Merchant

Adventurers for many years and almost certainly

lived and worked in this building.

Mansion's place of work was in the Burg, in the

precincts of Sint Donaas.

This blog is an enthusiastic introduction only; seriously-interested readers should go to the museum and buy the splendid book, Colard Mansion. Incunabula, Prints and Manuscripts in Medieval Bruges. It contains many scholarly but accessible essays on various aspects of Mansion's life and work.