DK Travel : Amsterdam : Amsterdams Historisch Museum

Amsterdams Historisch Museum

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The Historical Museum houses the city’s most fascinating collection of artifacts, archaeological finds, clothes, jewellery, maps, paintings and sculptures. Originally a convent, in 1580 it became the city orphanage. Handsome extensions were added by Hendrick and Pieter de Keyser before Jacob van Campen’s magnificent rebuilding of 1634. The orphans moved out in 1960, and in 1975 the museum moved in. Its stunningly presented exhibits and interactive displays chart Amsterdam’s growth and metamorphosis over the centuries.
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Top 10 Works

1. Bird’s-eye View of Amsterdam

Cornelis Anthonisz’s 1538 map of Amsterdam (the oldest extant) includes the Dam, Oude Kerk and Nieuwe Kerk.
2. The Return from the Second Voyage to the East Indies

Hendrik Corneliszoon Vroom’s painting (1599) celebrates the first successful expedition to the Far East to buy spices.
3. Terrestrial and Celestial Globes

A pair of costly globes lent prestige to any self-respecting 17th-century intellectual. Joan Willemsz Blaeu must have made this unique pair after 1644 because they show the Australian coast, just discovered by Abel Tasman.
4. 19th-century Jewellery

Sophia Lopez Suasso-de Bruijn was a passionate collector of jewellery; even on her deathbed, she spent 5,400 guilders on watches and snuffboxes. Most of the stunning pieces on display are Italian.
5. Dam Square

George Hendrik Breitner based his cityscapes on photographs; despite its Impressionist style, this famous painting (1895– 98) still has a photographic quality.
6. Turbo Shell

This exquisite mother-of-pearlturbo marmoratus is covered in tiny engraved animals. It dates from around 1650 and was probably brought from the Orient by the Dutch East India Company (VOC).
7. Orphan Girls going to Church

Nicolaas van der Waaij’s charming painting of around 1895 hangs in the anteroom to the Regents’ Chamber.
8. Dr F M Wibaut

This powerful bronze head was made in 1934 by Tjipke Visser, favourite sculptor of the Social Democratic Workers’ Party (SDAP). The subject was Floor Wibaut, SDAP Councillor for housing in the 1920s, who dedicated himself to building new apartments for the working class.
9. The Anatomy Lesson of Dr Jan Deijman

In Rembrandt’s original, eight surgeons watched Dr Deijman dissect a corpse. Fire destroyed most of the painting in 1723, but the frontal perspective of the remaining group is still quite remarkable.
10. Model of the Oosterdok

This wonderful model of the Oosterdok Lock dates from 1831, the year work started on the lock itself. It was part of a larger project to counteract a build-up of silt, which barred large ships from the harbour.

Practical Information

The David & Goliath café is inside Joost Bilhamer’s Kalverstraat entrance. Start your sightseeing here; it will help you understand the city when you begin to explore. The electronic map in Room 1 traces Amsterdam’s development from AD 1000 to 2000. Don’t miss the delightful façade stones set into the wall of the museum in St Luciënsteeg. Kalverstraat 92; Sint Luciensteeg 27; Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 357 020 523 1822 www.ahm.nl Open 10am–5pm Mon–Fri, 11am–5pm Sat, Sun and hols. Closed 1 Jan, 30 Apr, 25 Dec Admission: adults €6; children 6–15 €3 (under 6s free); concessions €4.50