2 Best Sights in Namur, The Meuse and the Ardennes

Located in a handsome 18th-century town house, this museum contains a large collection of medieval and Renaissance art, the undoubted highlight of which is the Trésor Hugo d’Oignies. When you enter the small exhibition room containing these pieces, you will be immediately engaged by the sight of glowing glass cases of brightly lit gold and bejeweled objets d’art. This prize collection of crosses, medallions, reliquaries, and other religious artifacts is considered one of the seven treasures of Belgium. The relics were created by Brother Hugo d’Oignies for the monastery in nearby Oignies in the first half of the 13th century. Between the French Revolution and World War II, the collection was protected by the Sisters of Notre Dame. Look for a tiny portable altar, once belonging to Cardinal Jacques de Vitry, and a book of gospels containing parchment painted with gold leaf.

Considered a scandal in his day, Surrealist artist and Namur native Félicien Rops (1833–98) is now heralded as an artistic treasure. This museum houses a large collection of his drawings, engravings, and prints, which are by turns surreal, erotic, and whimsical. Rops spent time in Paris, mingling with the likes of Charles Baudelaire and Stéphane Mallarmé.