Collections

The art collections

When Count Guy van den Steen (1906-1999) and his wife Lady Moyra Butler (1920-1959) decided to move to Jehay in 1950, the château was unoccupied. In addition to making alterations and remodelling, they furnished the building to give it the splendour and prestige worthy of an aristocratic residence.

The core of the Jehay art collection is composed of family heirlooms: objects once belonging to the van den Steen family and works brought from across the English Channel to Belgium by Lady Moyra Butler. Born in Ireland, she passed away in 1959 after only nine years living here. The Count spent the rest of his life growing his collection, adding new acquisitions, personal sculptures and paintings, archaeological objects found on digs he went on and gifts.

There are very few archival documents relating the history of the van den Steen collection.

We know more about the history of the works from the Butler line. These pieces were transported across the English Channel to Belgium by Lady Moyra Butler. Even if they are not all originally from Ireland, some of the items all share the prestigious honour of being on display at Kilkenny Castle owned by the Butler dynasty. Kilkenny Castle remained the primary Irish residence of the powerful Butler family for almost 600 years. In 1967, Arthur, the 6th Marquis of Ormonde, donated the castle to the people of Kilkenny for the token sum of fifty pounds. Now completely restored, this historic landmark is one of Ireland's most popular monuments.

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