Kempen Diamond Centre

Nijlen is a small town 25 km east of the city of Antwerp where a workshop for cutting, grinding and setting diamonds was established in 1908-10 by Peter Lieckens for his sons who had been apprenticed to the diamond trade in Antwerp. The workshop, or slijperij (grindery) has been restored and now displays the history of diamond working in Antwerp province. The building is of two storeys, with the top floor lit from large windows in the roof as well as in the front wall. The centre, opened in August 2014, brings together two historic collections, those of the Lieckens company and that from the museum at Grobbendonk, 7 km north-east of Nijlen on the north side of the Albert Canal. The skills of working diamonds are demonstrated and there are examples of work done in the region in the past. The centre has been supported by the municipalities of Nijlen and Grobbendonk and by the provincial government.