Museums in Netherlands

Rijksmuseum

The Rijksmuseum is a Dutch national museum dedicated to arts and history in Amsterdam. The museum has on display 8,000 objects of art and history, from their total collection of 1 million objects from the years 1200–2000. The collection contains more than 2,000 paintings from the Dutch Golden Age by notable painters such as Jacob Isaakszoon van Ruisdael, Frans Hals, Johannes Vermeer, Jan Steen, Rembrandt, and Rembrandt' ...
Founded: 1800 | Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

Van Gogh Museum

Amsterdam Van Gogh Museum maintains the world’s largest collection of the works of the world’s most popular artist - Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890), his paintings, drawings and letters, completed with the art of his contemporaries. Each year, 1.6 million visitors come to the Van Gogh Museum, making it one of the 25 most popular museums in the world. The collection features the works of Vincent van Gogh – ...
Founded: | Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

Stedelijk Museum

The Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam is a museum for modern art, contemporary art and design. The 19th century building was designed by Adriaan Willem Weissman and the 21st century wing with the current entrance was designed by Benthem Crouwel Architects. The collection comprises modern and contemporary art and design from the early 20th century up to the 21st century. It features artists such as Vincent van Gogh, Wassily Kand ...
Founded: 1874 | Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

Vermeer Center

The Vermeer Center Delft brings back Johannes Vermeer to Delft. The center is located at the historical location of the Saint Lucas guild (painters guild) on the Voldersgracht. Johannes Vermeer is one of the best known artists from the Dutch Golden Age. His name is inextricably linked with Delft, the city in which he was born in 1632 and where he lived and worked all his life. His paintings found their way all over the wo ...
Founded: | Location: Delft, Netherlands

Buurkerk

The Buurkerk is a former medieval parish church. It is documented as being burned in in 1131, 1173, 1253 and 1279. The tower dates from 1370, but was never finished. In 1577 a cannon was installed in the church tower, aimed at Vredenburg (castle) where the Spanish soldiers there were under siege by the Utrecht schutters. Around 1580 the church endured the protestant reformation and in 1586 it was formally handed over to t ...
Founded: 1279 | Location: Utrecht, Netherlands

Mauritshuis

The Mauritshuis museum houses the Royal Cabinet of Paintings which consists of 841 objects, primarily Dutch Golden Age paintings. The collections contains works by Johannes Vermeer, Rembrandt van Rijn, Jan Steen, Paulus Potter, Frans Hals, Hans Holbein the Younger, and others. Probably the most famous painting in Mauritshuis is The Girl with a Pearl Earring (ca. 1665), one of Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer's masterworks. ...
Founded: 1822 | Location: Hague, Netherlands

Gevangenpoort

The Gevangenpoort (Prisoner"s Gate) is a former gate and medieval prison on the Buitenhof. From 1420 until 1828, the prison was used for housing people who had committed serious crimes while they awaited sentencing. Its most famous prisoner was Cornelis de Witt, who was held on the charge of plotting the murder of the stadtholder. He was lynched together with his brother Johan on 20 August 1672 on the square in fron ...
Founded: 1420 | Location: Hague, Netherlands

Rembrandt House Museum

The Rembrandt House Museum is a house in the Jodenbreestraat, where Rembrandt lived and painted for a number of years. A few years ago the house was thoroughly reconstructed on the inside to show how the house would have looked in Rembrandt"s days. Adjoining (and linked to) the house is a modern building where work of Rembrandt is on display, mainly etchings and also a part of his collection of objects from all over ...
Founded: 1911 | Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

Hermitage Amsterdam

The Hermitage Amsterdam is the Dutch branch of the world-famous Hermitage in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The Hermitage Amsterdam is an exhibition space and cultural education centre with a focus on Russian history and culture. It displays rotating selections of pieces from the Hermitage collection in Russia. These include paintings, graphic works, sculptures, applied art and archaeological discoveries. Hermitage Amsterdam h ...
Founded: | Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

Dutch Resistance Museum

The Dutch Resistance Museum (Verzetsmuseum) tells the story of the Dutch people in World War II. From 14 May 1940 to 5 May 1945, the Netherlands were occupied by Nazi Germany. The permanent exhibition recreates the atmosphere of the streets of Amsterdam during the German occupation of the World War II. Big photographs, old posters, objects, films and sounds from that horrible time, help to recreate the scene. The backgrou ...
Founded: | Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

Escher Museum

The Escher Museum (Escher in the Palace) is a museum featuring the works of the Dutch graphical artist M. C. Escher. The museum is housed in a former palace Lange Voorhout Palace dating from the 18th century. Queen Emma (Emma of Waldeck Pyrmont) bought the stately house in 1896. She used it as a winter palace from March 1901 till her death in March 1934. Four Dutch Queens used the palace for their business offices, till Q ...
Founded: | Location: Hague, Netherlands

Joods Historisch Museum

The Joods Historisch Museum (Jewish Historical Museum) is dedicated to Jewish history, culture and religion, in the Netherlands and worldwide. The Joods Historisch Museum opened its doors in 1932 and was inititally housed at the Waag (Weighing House) on Nieuwmarkt square. Following the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands in World War II, the museum was forced to close and much of the collection was lost. The museum reopene ...
Founded: 1932 | Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

Museum Het Prinsenhof

Museum Het Prinsenhof, "the Princes" Court", is located in the former Sint Agathaklooster monastery. In 1572, William of Orange chose the monastery as one of his houses. From this building, the Prince led the uprising against the Spanish rule over the Netherlands. On the 10th of July 1584 he was murdered on the stairs of Het Prinsenhof by the Spanish sympathiser Balthazar Gerards. The wall of the stairs sho ...
Founded: 1403 | Location: Delft, Netherlands

National Liberation Museum

The Liberation Museum is set in the beautiful landscape near Nijmegen to the site of Operation Market Garden, the largest airborne operation in history. It took place here in September 1944 and Operation Veritable, the Rhineland Offensive, the final road to freedom in Europe, started from here in February 1945. The museum brings the historical events of the liberation by the American, British, Canadian and Polish troopsba ...
Founded: | Location: Groesbeek, Netherlands

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Historic Site of the week

Krickenbeck Castle

Krickenbeck moated castle is one of the oldest on the lower Rhine. Its history dates back to the year 1104, when the castle was first mentioned. It is unclear why the old castle, which was certainly inhabited by Count Reginar, was abandoned or destroyed. In the mid-13th century the castle was moved to the current location. At the end of the 14th century the new castle belonged to the Counts of Kleve.

Johann Friedrich II of Schesaberg converted the castle into a Baroque mansion between 1708-1721. On September 7, 1902, a fire destroyed the entire mansion. From 1903 to 1904, a three-winged castle was built in the Neo-Renaissance style. Today Krickenbeck is a conference center.