t The Museum Willet-Holthuysen’s rooms range from a functional kitchen in the basement to a frivolous collector’s room on the first floor
G6 ⌂ Herengracht 605 v 4, 9, 14 # 10am–5pm Mon–Fri, 11am–5pm Sat & Sun ¢ Public hols ∑ willetholthuysen.nl
A visit to Amsterdam wouldn’t be complete without exploring one of the city’s iconic canal houses. Named after its last residents, the Museum Willet-Holthuysen allows the visitor a glimpse into the lives of the emerging merchant class who lived in luxury along the Grachtengordel (Canal Ring) in the 17th century.
Experience Eastern Canal Ring
t The Museum Willet-Holthuysen’s rooms range from a functional kitchen in the basement to a frivolous collector’s room on the first floor
The house was built in 1685 for Jacob Hop, mayor of Amsterdam. It became the property of coal magnate Pieter Holthuysen (1788–1858) in 1855. It then passed to his daughter Louisa (1824–95) and her husband, Abraham Willet (1825–88), who were both fervent collectors of paintings, glass, silver and ceramics. When Louisa died childless and a widow in 1895, the house and its many treasures were left to the city on the condition that it became a museum bearing their names. Room by room, the house is being restored and brought back to the time Abraham and Louisa lived here.
Arguably, the most interesting part of the house is found below stairs. Special exhibits illuminating the lives of the Willet-Holthuysens’ servants are displayed on the lower floor.
t The grand façade of the Museum Willet-Holthuysen