Lille's Grand Place, dating back to the Middle Ages and situated at the crossroads of the large Northern and Southern market places, is dedicated to trade, represented by the lavish 17th-century Vieille Bourse (Old Exchange). Constructed between 1652 and 1653, this is the town's finest building. The apparent unity of the edifice of the Vieille Bourse hides the fact that it actually consists of 24 small trading houses, leaning against a gallery around a courtyard. Every day except Sunday the cloister is occupied by bookstalls and florists. A bell-tower crowned with a gilded Mercury overlooks it all. Thanks to a patronage, the Vieille Bourse was renovated in 1995, revealing images of King Midas, Bacchus and Pomonas covered with fruit and garlands. The Lions of Flanders sculpted over the doorways recall that Lille once belonged to the Netherlands.