Riekend Rustpunt, Agricultural heritage museum at Sluis crossing in Berlare, Belgium

The Riekend Rustpunt is a museum at the lock crossing in Berlare that documents the transport of manure and waste from cities to farmland. It shows how waterways in Flanders served as vital connections between urban centers and agricultural regions over many centuries.

A lock probably built before the 15th century, with a white-stone vault, drained the Berlare Broek into the Zeeschelde. In 1644 Pieter Janssens, municipal receiver, alderman and flax trader, obtained permission from the widow of Don Diego Sanchez de Castro y Toledo to build a quay above it for loading hay, straw, peat, manure and slurry. The last ship moored in 1938; until 1960 cement and lime were stored here. The municipality restored the building in 2006 and opened the museum in 2011.

The museum shows how city dwellers organized waste management by using specialized workers to transport materials to the countryside. It tells the story of a practical relationship between town and country that is rarely visible today.

The museum stands on Het Sluis in Berlare, at a junction of cycling routes, so it is easily reached by bike. Local residents open and close the door themselves, so opening times depend on them rather than on a fixed staffed schedule. The building was restored by the municipality in 2006 and the museum opened in 2011.

The museum occupies a building raised in 1644, when Pieter Janssens, municipal receiver, alderman and flax trader, got permission from the widow of Don Diego Sanchez de Castro y Toledo to build a quay over a vanished lock. The last ship moored here in 1938, and until 1960 the building stored cement and lime.