Bruges Hotels Guide: Memling Museum
The Memling Museum is located in the Sint-Jaanshospitaal and contains a collection of paintings commissioned by the hospital in the fifteenth century.
German born Memling was supposedly nursed back to health by the hospital after being wounded at the Battle of Nancy and painted a number of works for the hospital as a way of expressing his gratitude. Unfortunatley this romantic tale is only a myth but what is true is that, in his day, Hans Memling was one of the leading figures in Bruges and one of it's wealthiest citizens. He is widely recognised as being one of the most important of the 'Flemish primitives'.
The main attraction of this museum is the St Ursula Shrine, a one metre long work on guilded wood telling the story of St Ursula.
Also of note is The Mystic Marriage of St Catherine, the Adoration of the Magi, Pieta, Altarpiece of Saint-John the Baptist and Saint-John the Evangelist and a remarkable portrait of one of the city's patrons, Maarten van Nieuwenhove.
