Here stands the heavy bronze statue of Jan van Eyck, the gifted inventor of oil painting.
In front, is the Academy or Poortersloge (14th century), formerly the House of the Burghers, then the meeting-place of the White Bear Company, whose emblem may still be seen in the corner of the building which overlooks the Rue Espagnole. It is the Beertje van Loge, the oldest "burgher" of Bruges, just as the Mannekenpis is the oldest "burgher" of Brussels. However, the "Bear of Bruges" is the older of the two (1417).
Place Jan Van Eyck.
The building was used as an Art Gallery from 1719 to 1898. Since then it has been entirely rebuilt in the original style, with a slender tower facing the Rue de l'Outre, and now contains the State Records.
On the right of the square stands the ancient Tonlieu, with its pretty façade, large gable and porch, the whole artistically restored in 1880. The Municipal Library, comprising some 15,000 volumes, is now housed there. The collection includes a series of incunables printed by Colard Mansion of Bruges (15th century), 562 MSS, a collection of epitaphs, and the Steinmetz Collection of drawings and engravings.
Take Rue de l'Académie, facing which, on arriving at the Place du Theatre, is the Maison des Génois, a souvenir of the great prosperity of the city during the Burgundian epoch.
The tympanum of the door is decorated with a St. George and Dragon. This ancient warehouse of the rich Italian merchants is now a café.
In the middle of the Square is the Theatre and behind it, the gloomy Maison des Tonneliers.