Institutions

A

Affichemuseum Hoorn

Affichemuseum Hoorn

The Dutch Poster Museum Hoorn was established in 2003 and manages a collection of approximately 32,000 posters, the majority of which are post-war posters.

Amsterdam Museum

Amsterdam Museum

The Amsterdam Museum aims at opening up and keeping alive the history of Amsterdam to as large an audience as possible.

Amsterdam Pipe Museum

Amsterdam Pipe Museum

The Amsterdam Pipe Museum (formerly known as Pijpenkabinet) displays pipes as works of art, embodying the global culture of smoking over 25 centuries. The museum is also the international knowledge center for pipes.

ANP Foundation

ANP Foundation

The Netherlands National Press Agency (ANP) founded the ANP Foundation in 2008 to make its historical archive publicly accessible.

Atlas van Stolk

Atlas van Stolk

The Atlas van Stolk is a collection of prints, drawings, photographs and posters pertaining to the history of the Netherlands.

Atria, kennisinstituut voor emancipatie en vrouwengeschiedenis

Atria, kennisinstituut voor emancipatie en vrouwengeschiedenis

Atria, collects, manages and documents the cultural heritage of women from around the world in past and present.

B

Belasting & Douane Museum

Belasting & Douane Museum

The objective of the Tax and Customs Museum is to arouse more interest in the history of taxes and customs by collecting, conservinga nd presenting related material.

Bibliotheek Rotterdam

Bibliotheek Rotterdam

The Rotterdam Library includes the Central Library and 23 branches, annually attracting approximately 3.4 million visitors.

Bijzondere Collecties Leiden

Bijzondere Collecties Leiden

Manuscripts, old and special prints, illustrations, drawings, photos, maps and charts and archives; often unique material from all corners of the world.

Bijzondere Collecties van de Universiteit van Amsterdam

Allard Pierson. De collecties van de universiteit van Amsterdam

Allard Pierson keeps the heritage collections of the University Library of Amsterdam. The collections consist of old and / or precious and rare books, prints and manuscripts.

British Library

British Library

The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, its collection holding over 150 million items in all known languages and formats.

C

CBG|Centrum voor familiegeschiedenis

CBG|Centrum voor familiegeschiedenis

The Centraal Bureau voor Genealogie (CBG) is a major information centre for genealogy, family history and heraldry, with an international reputation.

Centraal Museum

Centraal Museum

The oldest municipal museum of the Netherlands possesses extensive and valuable collections of old, modern and applied art.

D

DBNL

DBNL

DBNL is the website of the Stichting Digitale Bibliotheek voor de Nederlandse Letteren (Digital Library of Dutch Literature Foundation).

Directie der Oostersche Handel en Reederijen

Directie der Oostersche Handel en Reederijen

The 'Directie der Oostersche Handel en Reederijen' promotes activities concerning maritime history, preferably activities that increase knowledge about the Dutch Baltic trade.

E

Erfgoed Leiden en Omstreken

Erfgoed Leiden en Omstreken

Erfgoed Leiden en Omstreken is a centre for historic research, education and information on behalf of everyone who wishes to learn more about the city of Leiden, the neighbouring municipalities and/or their inhabitants.

Erfgoed van de Oorlog

Erfgoed van de Oorlog

The Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sports’ War Heritage subsidy program was designed as a financial stimulus to preserve important material from and about World War II and to promote the use of this material.

EYE Film Instituut Nederland

EYE Film Instituut Nederland

The goal of the EYE Film Institute Netherlands is advancing film culture by building up a collection, presentations, advertising, research, education and knowledge transfer.

F

Frans Hals Museum

Frans Hals Museum

The Frans Hals museum boasts the largest collection of paintings by Frans Hals in the world.

G

Geldmuseum

Geldmuseum

The Geldmuseum was a museum about money.

Gemeentemuseum Den Haag

Gemeentemuseum Den Haag

Gemeentemuseum Den Haag owns a large collection of modern art and collections covering disciplines such as fashion, music and arts & crafts.

Gevangenismuseum

Gevangenismuseum

The Prison Museum offers visitors an insight into Dutch criminal laws and their enforcement dating back to 1600. The museum is located in a building of the former penal colony Justitiedorp (Justice Village) at Veenhuizen, giving it an extra dimension.

H

Historisch Centrum Overijssel

Collectie Overijssel

The Overijssel Collection aims to make the cultural heritage housed in its archives accessible to and bring it to the attention of a wide audience.

Huygens ING

Huygens ING

Huygens ING makes literary texts and historical sources available.

I

Internationaal Instituut voor Sociale Geschiedenis

Internationaal Instituut voor Sociale Geschiedenis

The IISG in Amsterdam is one of the largest documentation and research centres for social history in the world.

J

Joods Historisch Museum

Joods Historisch Museum

The Jewish Historical Museum in Amsterdam is the only museum in the Netherlands about Jewish history, religion and culture.

K

Katholiek Documentatie Centrum

Katholiek Documentatie Centrum

The Catholic Documentation Centre (KDC) preserves, collects and makes accessible documentation on catholic life in the Netherlands from the beginning of the nineteenth century up to the present day.

Koninklijk Instituut voor taal-, land- en volkenkunde

Koninklijk Instituut voor taal-, land- en volkenkunde

The KITLV (the acronym for Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde) is a leading centre for the study of the cultural and social sciences of Indonesia, Surinam, the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba.

Koninklijk Oudheidkundig Genootschap

Koninklijk Oudheidkundig Genootschap

Preserved for the Netherlands since 1858. Various kinds of Dutch objects of historical and cultural significance.

Koninklijke Bibliotheek

Koninklijke Bibliotheek

The Koninklijke Bibliotheek (KB) is the National Library of the Netherlands: its mission is to bring people and information together. The KB plans to digitize all Dutch books, newspapers and journals in the years to come.

L

Letterkundig Museum

Literatuurmuseum

The Literary Museum administers the records and collections of some 6,000 Dutch language writers and publishing houses and puts on exhibitions.

Library of Congress

Library of Congress

The Library of Congress is the national library of the United States and the research arm of the United States Congress.

Linschoten-Vereeniging

Linschoten-Vereeniging

The Linschoten Vereeniging is an association devoted to the publication of (rare) historic travel reports.

M

Mauritshuis

Mauritshuis

The Mauritshuis museum – a seventeenth-century mansion situated on the Hofvijver in The Hague – has housed since 1922 an important part of the paintings owned by the Dutch State.

Meertens Instituut

Meertens Instituut

The Meertens Instituut is a research institute that concerns itself with the documentation and study of the Dutch language and culture.

Multatuli Huis

Multatuli Huis

The Multatuli House has been the main centre for written and printed information on Multatuli since 1910.

Museon

Museon

Museon in The Hague holds collections in fields ranging from natural history and technology to archaeology, history and cultural anthropology.

Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen

Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen

The Boijmans Van Beuningen Museum offers an extremely varied collection of artworks. Wandering from gallery to gallery, the visitor travels through the history of art, starting in the Middle Ages and ending in our time.

Museum Catharijneconvent

Museum Catharijneconvent

Museum Catharijneconvent in Utrecht is the national museum for Christian art and cultural history.

Museum Maluku

Museum Maluku

Museum Maluku (Moluccan Historical Museum) is a 'living monument' that provides an image of the history of the Moluccan community in the Netherlands.

Museum Oud Amelisweerd (MOA)

Museum Oud Amelisweerd (MOA)

MOA Museum Oud Amelisweerd preserves, administers and exhibits three unique collections: a historical estate, the Armando Collection and the collection Chinese wallpapers.

Museum Speelklok

Museum Speelklok

Since 1958, Museum Speelklok (Museum Musical Clock) presents its collection of automatic musical instruments in continuous tours with hourly demonstrations.

Museum Volkenkunde

Museum Volkenkunde

The Ethnographic Museum’s collections include exceptional objects, photographs and other material originating from non-Western civilizations.

Museum voor Communicatie

Museum voor Communicatie

The Museum voor Communicatie (Postal Museum) in The Hague administers a very extensive collection in the field of postal services, philately and telecommunication.

N

Nationaal Archief

Nationaal Archief

The Nationaal Archief (The National Archive) preserves government records and the records of private individuals.

Nationaal Militair Museum

Nationaal Militair Museum

The Army Museum in Delft shows the history of the army in the Netherlands. The museum also possesses a comprehensive library and a multimedia centre.

Nationaal Onderwijsmuseum

Nationaal Onderwijsmuseum

In the educational field, the Nationaal Onderwijsmuseum (National Museum of Education) administers Europe’s largest collection of educational material.

National Diet Library

National Diet Library

The Japanese National Library.

Naturalis Biodiversity Center

Naturalis Biodiversity Center

The National Natural History Museum Naturalis in Leiden makes knowledge on nature, its great diversity and beauty, accessible to a wide audience.

Nederlands Archief Grafisch Ontwerpers

Nederlands Archief Grafisch Ontwerpers

The Dutch Graphic Designers Archives Foundation (Stichting Nederlands Archief Grafisch Ontwerpers-NAGO) was set up in 1992 with the objective of acquiring the archives of graphic designers of Dutch nationality or living in the Netherlands, preserving them and making them accessible.

Nederlands Architectuurinstituut, onderdeel van Het Nieuwe Instituut

Nederlands Architectuurinstituut, onderdeel van Het Nieuwe Instituut

The Nederlands Architectuurinstituut - NAi (Netherlands Architecture Institute) compiles, administers and unlocks the archives and collections of Dutch architects, town planning experts, professional associations and educational programs from 1800 onward.

Nederlands Bureau voor Toerisme & Congressen

Nederlands Bureau voor Toerisme & Congressen

The Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions (NBTC) is the leading marketing and promotion organisation of destination Holland.

Nederlands Centrum voor Autohistorische Documentatie

Nederlands Centrum voor Autohistorische Documentatie

The NCAD collects, manages and makes available books, magazines, photos and other documents on the history of automobiles in the broadest sense.

Nederlands Fotomuseum

Nederlands Fotomuseum

The Nederlands fotomuseum (Netherlands Museum for Photography) aims at making Dutch photography and its history easily accessible and at furthering people’s interest in this cultural heritage.

Nederlands Instituut Beeld en Geluid

Nederlands Instituut Beeld en Geluid

The Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid looks after, and releases, 70 per cent of the Dutch audio-visual heritage.

Nederlands Muziekinstituut

Nederlands Muziekinstituut

The Netherlands Music Institute in The Hague is the national repository for music resource materials.

Nederlands Openluchtmuseum

Nederlands Openluchtmuseum

The Netherlands Open Air Museum in Arnhem is a national museum that features ordinary people’s everyday life in the Netherlands.

Nederlands Tegelmuseum

Nederlands Tegelmuseum

The Netherlands Tiles Museum illustrates how Dutch tiles have developed as an applied art form from the sixteenth century to the present day.

NIOD Instituut voor Oorlogs-, Holocaust- en Genocidestudies

NIOD Instituut voor Oorlogs-, Holocaust- en Genocidestudies

NIOD manages the archives of the German occupation of the Netherlands and the Japanese occupation of Dutch Indonesia, along with photographs, newspapers, underground magazines, pamphlets and books.

O

Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam

Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam

The OBA offers free access to information, knowledge and culture to everyone, by offering high quality library services for education, participation, and cultural life.

P

Panorama Mesdag

Panorama Mesdag

In addition to the largest painting in the Netherlands (the panorama), The Mesdag Collection has a collection of paintings, drawings and photos.

Poppenspe(e)lmuseum

Poppenspe(e)lmuseum

The museum has a wide and fascinating collection of puppets, marionettes, photographs, books, posters, prints and paraphernalia pertaining to (folk) puppetry and related arts.

R

Rademakers Collectie

Rademakers Collectie

The Rademakers Collection consists of a private compilation of romantic paintings from the 19th century.

ReclameArsenaal

ReclameArsenaal

The ReclameArsenaal (Advertising Arsenal) is a foundation which is responsible for preserving and administering the Dutch national advertising heritage.

Regionaal Archief Alkmaar

Regionaal Archief Alkmaar

Regionaal Archief at Alkmaar is a joint venture involving 15 municipalities of North Kennemerland and the northern part of North Holland.

Regionaal Archief Nijmegen

Regionaal Archief Nijmegen

The Regional Archives Nijmegen manages the archives of Nijmegen and the surrounding towns, companies, associations and private individuals.

Rijksbureau voor Kunsthistorische Documentatie

Rijksbureau voor Kunsthistorische Documentatie

The RKD (Netherlands Institute for Art History) is the central Dutch documentation centre for visual art.

Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed

Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed

The National Heritage Agency is responsible, with others, for managing the Netherlands’ heritage both above and below the ground and under water.

Rijksmuseum

Rijksmuseum

With its collection of nearly one million objects, the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam is the largest museum of art and history in the Netherlands.

Rijksmuseum van Oudheden

Rijksmuseum van Oudheden

The Rijksmuseum van Oudheden's collection contains more than 80.000 objects originating from Ancient Egypt, the Near East, Classical Antiquity and the early history of the Netherlands.

S

Scheepvaartmuseum

Scheepvaartmuseum

The Netherlands Maritime Museum Amsterdam museum holds a collection of maritime art, crafts and other maritime-historical objects, as well as one of the largest cartographic collections in the world.

Sociaal Historisch Centrum Limburg

Sociaal Historisch Centrum Limburg

The Sociaal Historisch Centrum voor Limburg (Social-historical Centre for the Province of Limburg), is a documentation and research centre about the social, economical and cultural history of the Dutch province of Limburg.

Spaarnestad Photo

Spaarnestad Photo

Spaarnestad Photo (SPH) is Holland’s largest photo archive.

Spaarnestad Photo was originally the photographic archives of the publishing company De Spaarnestad (now known as Verenigde Nederlandse Uitgeverijen VNU or United Dutch Publishers) that had been founded in Haarlem in 1906. De Spaarnestad was known for its illustrated magazines such as the Katholieke Illustratie and Panorama as well as for the women’s magazines Libelle, Beatrijs and Margriet.

The Spaarnestad Photo collection was divested from the publishing company in 1986. It then grew substantially as more and more Dutch publishers and photo press agencies discarded their photo archives toward the end of the twentieth century.

Cooperation with the Dutch National Archives
The entire Spaarnestad Photo collection has received the National Heritage designation. The National Archives is working together with Spaarnestad Photo to ensure the collection’s preservation, since this is by far the most interesting photographic archive in the country and because of the care it requires.

In 2009 and 2010 the Spaarnestad Photo collection was transferred from Haarlem to the National Archives in The Hague, where all the facilities and expertise are available for its preservation and management.

Together with the National Archives’ own collection, the Spaarnestad Photo collection now constitutes the largest collection of photographs in the Netherlands. It is even one of the world’s most comprehensive archives in the field of national and international press and documentary photography. The oldest material dates back to the late nineteenth century, but the emphasis lies on the twentieth century.

Through the website of De Spaarnestad, Spaarnestad Photo makes any material included in the photographic collections available to anyone who wishes to publish it, insofar as the copyrights rest with Spaarnestad Photo (or the rightful claimants have allowed publication). This permission is extended to publishers, newspapers, exhibitions, etc, since the photographs were primarily taken for journalistic and documentary reasons, in other words for publication. The opportunity for publication now provided by the Spaarnstad Photo is in keeping with the original photographers’ purpose and, moreover, generates income for the photographers, their heirs or other rightful claimants.

The National Archives and Spaarnestad Photo supplement, preserve and manage the collection of national and international analog and digital press and documentary photography of the twentieth and twenty-first century. They conduct research or contact for it, they publish on this research, and make the photographic collection available to the public. 

Go to www.nationaalarchief.nl for more information on the National Archives and its collections.
Go to www.spaarnestadphoto.nl for more information on Spaarnestad Photo and its collections.

Spoorwegmuseum

Spoorwegmuseum

The Railway Museum manages the largest collection of all manner of railway-related objects in the Netherlands.

Stadsarchief Amsterdam

Stadsarchief Amsterdam

The Amsterdam Municipal Archives may be consulted by anybody who wants to know more about the history of his or her Amsterdam family, house, enterprise or neighbourhood.

Stadsarchief Dordrecht/DiEP

Stadsarchief Dordrecht/DiEP

DiEP preserves and administers historic information on the city of Dordrecht and surrounding municipalities; it opens them up to the public. DiEP is a library, archive and multimedia centre all in one.

Stadsarchief en Athenaeumbibliotheek Deventer

Stadsarchief en Athenaeumbibliotheek Deventer

SAB in Deventer is a public municipal service. Visitors have free access to the records and consult scientific and professional literature.

Stadsarchief Rotterdam

Stadsarchief Rotterdam

Stadsarchief Rotterdam (Rotterdam Municipal Archives) provides historical information about Rotterdam and environs.

Stadsarchief Sittard-Geleen

Stadsarchief Sittard-Geleen

The Sittard-Geleen City Archive has an extensive library about the area's history.

Stichting Academisch Erfgoed

Stichting Academisch Erfgoed

The initiative for the Stichting Academisch Erfgoed (Academic Heritage Foundation) was taken by the four classic universities (Amsterdam, Groningen, Leiden and Utrecht) and the Delft University of Technology.

Stichting Jacobus van Looy

Stichting Jacobus van Looy

The Jacobus van Looy Foundation’s objective is to promote the interest in the work of both writer and painter.

Stichting Pieter Fentener van Vlissingen

Stichting Pieter Fentener van Vlissingen

Since 1961, the foundation has been a combination of a museum, a library and the archives of Vlisco B.V., a private limited company in Helmond.

Stichting Willem Witsen

Stichting Willem Witsen

The Willem Witsen Society sets out to promote the interest in and study of Willem Witsen and his network.

T

Tresoar

Tresoar

Tresoar supports research of the Frisian language, literature and history. Tresoar is a public records office, library, documentation centre and museum, all in one.

Trinity College Dublin

Trinity College Dublin

The Library of Trinity College Dublin is the largest library in Ireland and dates back to 1592.

Tropenmuseum

Tropenmuseum

The Tropenmuseum is part of the Royal Tropical Institute. The Museum contains 160,000 objects and 170,000 historic and contemporary photographs.

U

Universiteitsbibliotheek Vrije Universiteit, afdeling Bijzondere Collecties

Universiteitsbibliotheek Vrije Universiteit, afdeling Bijzondere Collecties

The VU University library in Amsterdam manages the cultural and religious heritage of the VU University Amsterdam.

V

Van Gogh Museum

Van Gogh Museum

The Van Gogh Museum holds the world’s largest collection of paintings, drawings and letters by Vincent van Gogh.

Vereniging De Hollandsche Molen

Vereniging De Hollandsche Molen

The Vereniging De Hollandsche Molen (Dutch Mill Association) works for the conservation and preservation of Dutch windmills and watermills.

Z

Zeeuwse Bibliotheek

ZB Bibliotheek van Zeeland

ZB focuses on the domains of knowledge, information, science and culture in the province of Zeeland

Zijper Museum

Zijper Museum

The Zijper Museum employs changing themed exhibitions (among other things) to illustrate the history of the diking in of Zijpe and the old coastal village of Petten.

Zuid-Afrika Huis

Zuid-Afrika Huis

The library of the South Africa House is reputed to be the leading source of information on the language, literature and history of South Africa in the Netherlands.

Zuiderzeemuseum

Zuiderzeemuseum

The Zuiderzee Museum tells the tale of seven centuries of Zuiderzee history.