History of the collection

From private collection to public collection

The driving force behind the collection and presentation of the Merghelynck Museum is Arthur Merghelynck (1853-1908). His interests include history, archaeology and genealogy. His fortune allowed him to collect without limits and invest time in research. His noble origins gave him access to many archives and private collections. He was also the unpaid town archivist of Ypres. He immersed himself in family history, the history of the Westhoek region and the relationship between the two. In addition, he has a great fascination for the 18th century, the century in which his family enjoyed its heyday. Home furnishings, architecture, lifestyle, art and utensils, clothing and hygiene: he researches and collects it all.

The family history inspires the collecting.

The Merghelynck family built up their wealth in the Middle Ages through the cloth trade. In the early 16th century, just before this trade declined, the family moved from Saint-George in northern France to Ypres. The family established a network in the city and was soon represented in various crafts and government bodies. In addition to the cloth trade, the family was also active as pewter casters and held various government positions. The family's history reached its peak in the 18th century. Pater Familias Ferdinand Merghelynck was ennobled and built a new mansion befitting his new status in the centre of Ypres, in a side street of the Rijselsestraat. This house later disappeared from the family patrimony until Arthur Merghelynck bought it in 1892. He converted this building into the Merghelynck Museum. Arthur Merghelynck had previously acquired Beauvoorde Castle, which he transformed into his home. This castle has since been converted into a museum.

Hotel Museum Merghelynck

In 1894, two years after he was able to buy back the family home in Ypres, he opened the building as a “Hotel-Museum”. He presented his collection as a Gesamtkunstwerk, offering his own interpretation of 18th-century bourgeois life in relation to the building. It is remarkable that Arthur Merghelynck immediately set it up as a museum, opened it to the public and promoted it. This underlines his vision of collecting for the purpose of presenting and sharing with the public. At the opening in 1894, he published a luxurious album, Heybrouck, in a limited edition (75 copies), in which he described the history of the city palace with photographs by the Ypres photographer Hector Heybrouck. These photographs show every room of the Hotel-Museum and a unique portrait of Arthur Merghelynck. The album is an important source of knowledge about the layout, presentation and collection of the Hotel-Museum as initiated by Arthur Merghelynck.

Deep traces of the First World War

During the first attacks in 1914, immediate action was taken to secure a vulnerable part of the Merghelynck Museum's collection. Caretaker Gustave Verhaeghe took the initiative to move part of the collection to Langemark. This location later ended up on the front line and the pieces were never returned.

After a grenade hit the inner courtyard in 1915, a large-scale evacuation of the collection was organised. Via Poperinge, Le Havre, and Le Touquet, the collection was exhibited in the “Salle Flamande” in the Petit Palais in Paris. Shortly after the collection was moved, the Hotel-Museum was completely destroyed.

After World War I, the collections from the Petit Palais were moved back to their place of origin. As the Merghelynck Museum was completely destroyed, the collection initially travelled to other locations. The crates containing the collection were taken to Brussels, where they were housed successively in the Palace of Justice, the Palace of Academies and then in the cellars of the Royal Museums of Art and History in the Cinquantenaire Park.

Reconstruction and reopening of the museum

In the 1930s, restoration work began on the destroyed building. In the 1950s, the museum was reorganised. A curator was appointed, the reconstruction of the building was completed and the collection stored at the KMKG in Brussels was returned to Ypres.

The museum is being redesigned based on photographs taken by Arthur Merghelynck at the time. An identical reconstruction is not possible because some items in the collection have been lost or damaged. Similar items are being tracked down and acquired or borrowed from other museums or collectors. In exceptional cases, replicas are being made based on photographs of original 18th-century pieces that have disappeared.

On 10 June 1956, the museum reopened its doors after being closed for more than 40 years (since 1914). Due to the impact of World War I, what we see today is a 20th-century reconstruction of the 19th-century interpretation of an 18th-century town house. In 1983, the building was recognised as a monument. In 2015-2016, the building was restored with the help of a subsidy from Onroerend Erfgoed (Immovable Heritage).