Kasteel Sterckshof

Antwerp, Belgium, Belgium

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Sterckshof is a historic castle in Deurne, a district of Antwerp, Belgium, set in the Provincial Domain Rivierenhof with a moat, formal gardens and parkland.

The site originally held a fortified farm called Hooftvunder, first mentioned in the 13th century, which was later transformed into a fortified estate and, in 1524, bought by the Antwerp merchant and banker Gerard Sterck, who rebuilt it as a Renaissance castle; from that time the estate was known as Sterckshof, named after him. 

The castle survived the 16th‑ and 17th‑century wars but gradually fell into decline and was used as a farmhouse by the early 20th century; in 1921 the Province of Antwerp purchased the estate to create the public Rivierenhof park, and between 1931 and 1938 architect Jaak Alfons Van der Gucht reconstructed the building in a freely interpreted neo‑Flemish Renaissance style, retaining some old walls and parts dating back to the 16th century.

From 1938 the castle housed various cultural institutions, including the Museum for Flemish Civilization and later the Sterckshof Silver Museum, which moved to the new DIVA diamond museum in 2014; after years of vacancy the castle was sold in 2025 to private owners who plan to restore it and create a modern museum and recreational facility that will become a third cultural hub in Antwerp, alongside the existing museums in the city.