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The house is in two parts set around an inner courtyard. As you enter, the older, Flemish-style half is to the left – a series of rooms providing the domestic quarters, where Rubens lived and entertained. To the right is the working part of the house, containing Ruben’s studio and designed by the artist in grander Baroque style.

The massive ornamental screen was designed by Rubens in Italianate Baroque style to link the two parts of the house. It also provides a theatrical entrance to the formal garden beyond.

This room is notable for its wall hangings. Embossed Spanish leather was used as a kind of wallpaper in the houses of the well-to-do.

This charming little kitchen, with its tiled walls and open fireplace, is typical of Flanders. Note the pothooks with ratchets, designed to adjust the height of cooking vessels over the fire. The robust traditions of Flemish cuisine were forged in such kitchens.

A painting exhibited here, The Art Gallery of Cornelis van der Geest , shows how Rubens’ own gallery might have looked – every inch of wall space hung with pictures.

Eating and drinking played a central role in the social habits of Rubens’ day. A highlight here is a self-portrait of the artist , one of just four in existence.

Rubens died in this room, now refurbished as a living room. The Martyrdom of Sts Marcus and Marcellinus, attributed to the great Venetian artist Veronese, hangs here.

This elegant marble-lined room inspired by the Pantheon in Rome was used by Rubens to exhibit his collection of sculpture. Among the pieces shown today is a bust of a Satyr attributed to Lucas Fayherbe.

The most eye-catching item in this room is the beautiful 17th-century box bed. Beside it is a portrait of Rubens’ second wife Helena.

In this large and impressive room, Rubens worked with a team of assistants and apprentices to maintain his huge productivity. Pictures shown here include the exhilarating but unfinished Henry IV in the Battle of Ivry (c.1628–30).