Mont des Arts
Brussels
The Mont des Arts is a geometric garden surrounded by museums and large buildings. It lies between the lower and upper town of Brussels. From the top you can see the historic centre.
A neighbourhood to rebuild
In the mid-1800s this hill was covered with old houses and steep lanes. For decades people argued about what to build. Meanwhile the houses were knocked down, leaving a big empty plot.
The 1910 garden
In 1910 a French architect designed a terraced garden here, with waterfalls, viewpoints and fake rocks. The aim was to hide the empty plot under a blanket of flowers. It was meant to be temporary, but it stayed for almost fifty years.
Today's garden
In the 1950s the present complex was built, with a large building for the royal collections and a congress centre. The garden was redesigned in 1958, with geometric shapes and pools. It sits on top of an underground car park, like a roof garden. It was renewed in the early 2000s.
The carillon
On an arch over the street there is a carillon, an instrument made of bells. All around it are lots of little figures. If the carillon is working, the bells ring and the figures move when the clock strikes the hour. It's a short show: keep an eye on the time.
