This building with its double fa\u00e7ade (one Neoclassical, the other Modern) was, in the second half of the 19th century, inhabited by the photographer Louis Gh\u00e9mar, one of the pioneers of photography in Belgium. The house was converted into a Masonic venue in 1877 in order to accommodate the important lodge of “Les Amis Philanthropes”, among the members of which were notables such as Charles Buls, Mayor of Brussels; Th\u00e9odore Verhaeghen, founder of the Free University of Brussels (ULB); Nobel laureate Henri La Fontaine; and architect Victor Horta. Designed by Adolphe Samyn assisted by architects E. Hendrickx and J. De Blois, the building houses two temples of Egyptian inspiration.
\nThe 2025 ANTE Festival guided tour focuses on the Grand Temple, fascinating due to its large and colourful wall paintings, plaster decoration and columns and, of course, its Masonic symbols.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
This building with its double fa\u00e7ade (one Neoclassical, the other Modern) was, in the second half of the 19th century, inhabited by the photographer Louis Gh\u00e9mar, one of the pioneers of photography in Belgium. The house was converted into a Masonic venue in 1877 in order to accommodate the important lodge of “Les Amis Philanthropes”, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1985286,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"closed","template":"","acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n