En un regard
Le château en bref
The Kesselhof, formerly known as Hof ten Dyke or Bogaertsheyde, stands at no. 2 Bogaertsheide in Kessel, a district of Nijlen (Province of Antwerp), in a park beside the Grote Nete. This Neoclassical country house dates from the third quarter of the 19th century, but its precise chronology remains disputed. The local historian J.B. Stockmans (1910) attributes its construction to 1872–1874 and to Miss Emelia-Maria-Josepha van Praet, whereas the local history circle and the *Gids voor Vlaanderen* suggest the years 1862–1864 and the involvement of an Italian architect. The Flemish heritage inventory tentatively proposes the name of Joseph Claes for the building and attributes the design of the park to Louis Fuchs. The almost rectangular volume, three bays wide and two storeys high above a basement, is distinguished by a dome that dominates the west façade, above a semicircular projection rising the full height of the building, while the façade facing the river is organised around a recessed central section with a perron, portico and balcony. Rusticated basement, broad friezes, a balustrade along the top, paired engaged Ionic and Doric columns and round-arched windows with volute keystones enliven the elevations. In 1890 the estate passed to Raymond Geelhand-Meyers, and from 1906 it was occupied by Louis van de Werve-della Faille. Served by an avenue and surrounded by scattered outbuildings, it remains a private property, and it has been designated by the Flemish Region as protected architectural heritage.