Boekenberg Tower

I named this tower the Boekenberg Tower. Locally, it is just known as the ruined tower. It stands in the Boekenberg Park in the city of Antwerp, in the province of Antwerp, in the Flemish region in Belgium.

The Boekenberg Tower may look medieval, but it is actually a folly. It was built around 1800 by J.W. Smets, a banker-merchant, who added the park as a new extension to Boekenberg Castle.

That castle, a mid-18th century mansion with a core dating back to the 16th century, was purchased by Smets in 1798. He then decorated the park with the 'ruined' tower, an arched bridge, an artificial cave, and even a Japanese pagoda, as he mainly conducted business with Japan and China.

The pagoda didn't survive to the present day, and the castle now serves as a home for adolescents. The park was opened to the public in 1926.

Currently, the Boekenberg Tower is used by the Natural History Museum Boekenberg, which is housed in the artificial cave underneath it. The park is freely accessible.

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