The increased proliferation of classical education throughout sixteenth-century Europe led to an increased appreciation for the remnants of the past. Scholars and wealthy connoisseurs started to uncover the remains of Roman, Greek and prehistoric societies and several books were written on the subject. These works form foundations for the modern fields of archaeology and local history, which gradually developed over the following centuries. This history of Antwerp by the Dutch humanist Johannes Goropius Becanus describes both the antiquities of the city and details interesting legends and curiosities unique to the city.