Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam
In 1800 the first Rijksmuseum (National Museum) opened its doors, which was called the 'Nationale Kunst Gallerij' (National art gallery). At that time it was located in Huis ten Bosch in The Hague. In 1808 King Lodewijk Napoleon Bonaparte (brother of Napoleon Bonaparte) ordered for the museum to be moved to the Royal Palace on Damsquare and later on to the 'Trippenhuis' at the Kloveniersburgwal.
Many important paintings were stored in Amsterdam, which were added to the collection of the museum. The collection grew rapidly, so in 1885 the museum had to move one final time to its current location. The museum could then also add the collection of the 'Nederlandsch Museum voor Geschiedenis en Kunst' (The Netherlands museum for history and art) which was located in The Hague.
The current building of the Rijksmuseum is designed by P.J.H. Cuypers. He chose to use a mixture of Gothic and Renaissance styles. He also incorporated many ornaments, that refer to Dutch history, so take a good look at the exterior of the museum.
The Rijksmuseum houses over one million objects! It is therefore the largest museum for art and history in the Netherlands.
It is best known for the big collection of Dutch paintings from the 17th century, of Rembrandt, Johannes Vermeer, Frans Hals and Jan Steen. The painting that you must see is of course Rembrandt's 'Nachtwacht' (Nightwatch)!
You can wander round the Rijksmuseum for hours; there are over 200 rooms to get lost in. These rooms house five different collections: print room and photo collection, sculpture and applied art, Asiatic art, cultural history, and paintings.
