Thozée Castle – Mettet

Thozée Castle, the country retreat of the Belgian painter and engraver Félicien Rops, was occupied by Elisabeth Rops, the artist’s granddaughter, until her death in 1996. The old lady bequeathed the castle to the Félicien Rops Fund to save it from falling into decay and oblivion and to give it a new lease on cultural life.
This castle, the oldest parts of which go back to the beginning of the 18th century, is listed as a historical monument. Built in U-shape in a neoclassical style, the castle is attached to a farm and nested in a vast, 19-hectare haven of greenery.
Several rooms inside the castle have an interesting décor and have partly preserved floors, ceilings, stucco and woodwork from the 18th century.

An ambitious, long-term project
The Félicien Rops Fund plans to turn the place into a centre for the study and promotion of art focused on Félicien Rops and his age.
Maintenance and restoration works have been undertaken since the turn of the millennium to save the castle. Fifteen years later, the facades and roofs of the castle have already been restored and the first floor converted to artists’ residences thanks to the tenacity of its protectors, private donations and co-funding by the Wallonia Heritage Institute (on 1st January 2018 : “Wallonia Heritage Agency”, new designation).
The restoration of the décor inside the castle has got under way. An initial phase has been completed (restoration of the panelling and the floors, the plaster of the walls and ceilings, stability and clean-up work.
The next step will consist of the restoration of the interior decors proper and the arrangement of the museum premises.
In parallel, the Félicien Rops Fund wishes to embark on works for the maintenance and consolidation of the farm buildings adjacent to the castle.