At the end of the nineteenth century, the Maelbeek valley offered a unique setting for the development of a new residential district. Its squares, water features, fountains and tree-lined avenues attracted wealthy middle-class residents who commissioned the most talented architects of the period to design their homes. The district became a veritable laboratory of late nineteenth-century architecture, with facades in a wide variety of styles, from unfettered Eclecticism to Art Nouveau, then at its zenith.

This tour combines a tour of the interior of the Victor Horta’s van Eetvelde Mansion with a walking tour in the splendid Squares district. To understand the history of this architectural gem, while placing it in the context of the development of the surrounding district.