The Rijksmuseum

The Rijksmuseum (English: State Museum) is a Dutch national museum dedicated to arts and history in Amsterdam in the Netherlands. The museum is located at the Museum Square in the borough Amsterdam South, close to the Van Gogh Museum, the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, and the Concertgebouw.

The Rijksmuseum was founded in The Hague in 1800 and moved to Amsterdam in 1808, where it was first located in the Royal Palace and later in the Trippenhuis. The current main building was designed by Pierre Cuypers and was originally opened in 1885, but was closed for renovation from 2003 to 2013. On 13 April 2013, the main building was reopened by Queen Beatrix after the ten-year renovation which cost € 375 million.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org

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, among which are some masterpieces by Rembrandt, Frans Hals, and Johannes Vermeer. The museum also has a small Asian collection which is on display in the Asian Pavilion.

It started with merely 200 paintings at first. Now, it possesses almost 5,000 rare paintings, sculptures, historical objects and the work of Asiatic arts which accounts for another 43,000 additional art work.

Inside the Rijksmuseum, various kinds of art works and artifacts can be seen. The oriental art section features Chinese porcelains, Japanese Prints and some other items that came from Southeast Asia and the Far East.

In the sculpture and handicrafts section you will see a wide range of liturgical robes, furniture, tapestries, pottery, costumes, doll houses, jewels, snuff boxes, lace and many more.

Museums in general help educate people. It reminds us of our country’s history and for foreigners, this will help them better understand and appreciate the country.

Reference:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rijksmuseum

http://famouswonders.com

Posted in: Netherlands