KU Leuven manages an extensive and diverse collection of academic heritage.
A large proportion of the academic heritage relates to the university's history, including professor portraits, commemorative medals, memorabilia of academic ceremonies and remnants of defunct university museums. This academic heritage forms the university's memory repository, with many loose ends, but also a thread connecting 600 years of history.
The art collection boasts about 10,000 objects, from antique oil lamps and 18th-century porcelain right through to African sculptures and contemporary installations. With a large number of art objects on display in and around university buildings, they form part of everyday life at the university.
Less visible is the academic heritage: natural history collections, didactic collections, laboratory equipment, course materials for many generations of students and professors. In academic heritage policy, these objects are given a second life, with attention being given to their historical significance.
In the online database, only a limited proportion of the collections are accessible for now. Those looking for more information, we are happy to help.