The new Rijksmuseum makes it clear in all sorts of ways that it is not just an art history museum, but that it wants to tell the entire history of the Netherlands. The publication of the book The history of the Netherlands in 100 objects fits in perfectly with this. While Dutch politicians argued a
They were discovered by accident in London archives:thousands of letters written in the 17th and 18th centuries between sailors and those who stayed at home. After a linguistic pre-processing, we can learn a lot from this about the history of our language. Ijck wyns my dear man so bright good night
In less than a century, the Dutch landscape has changed beyond recognition. Peat areas were excavated, undulating fields were levelled. But the transformation of the landscape started much earlier. The metamorphosis that the Dutch landscape has undergone is unprecedented. It is only a century ago t
It was a technological innovation that had a greater impact than the iPad today:pottery. Thanks to pottery, people could extract more nutrients from their food, for example through nutritious stews, they could make poisonous plants edible and convert tough fare into soft baby food. And we can now fi
April is the month of reflection. At least, for those who are concerned with Guilt and Penance, the theme of the month of philosophy. Professional philosophers and other thinkers are examining the question of blame for the economic crisis. The Netherlands best-known philosopher and humanist Erasmus
Tiny hairs on the leaves of the kidney bean spike the legs of bed bugs. American researchers see a synthetic version of the leaves as a new means of combating the re-encroaching species. Bed bugs have plagued peoples lives for years by nesting between mattresses. They were gone for a long time, but
In 2013 it will be 300 years since the Treaty of Utrecht put an end to a whole series of devastating European wars. This anniversary is celebrated extensively in the Netherlands. Strange really, because the Dutch Republic was not exactly a winner at the negotiating table. From the moment King Louis
The intimate character of body and skin have an appealing symbolism. As a result, skin and body are often central to fashion phenomena such as make-up and piercing, in painting, visual arts, film, drama, dance and, last but not least, literature, reading and poetry. The skin is often a metaphor for
Archaeologists have unearthed Roman writing boards in London. The Museum of London Archeology (MOLA) reported this this summer. The handwritten documents are the oldest to date found in Britain. The Romans used wooden planks smeared with wax in the same way we use paper today:for notes, bills, corr
One of the oldest and most complete human ancestors, Lucy, probably died from a fall from a tree. The upright hominin has fallen from a height of about 15 meters, according to the researchers. They write that this week in Nature. But not everyone agrees with that conclusion. Lucy was found in 1974
The National Archives… that sounds impressive. But what exactly is happening in that huge building next to Central Station in The Hague? And what exactly do they keep there? NEMO Kennislink visits. Its a hot summer day and everyone is puffing outside. The perfect time to visit an archive, because t
The mysterious Codex Añute, a plastered Mixtec manuscript from 1556, contains another cartoon. Dutch scientists have succeeded in reading through the lime without damaging the codex. Shadows of the underlying figures can be seen for the first time. The Codex Añute depicts the genesis of the village
On August 17, 1945, Sukarno declared Indonesias independence. Get rid of the oppressive colonizer from the distant Netherlands and take matters into your own hands! The Dutch East Indies had been an economically profitable region for centuries and the population was not spared. Slavery was even more
Do you ever wonder which objects are in the paintings in the Rijksmuseum? Birds is often the vague description on the information accompanying a painting about – yes, you guessed it – birds, possibly followed by the name of the painter. A smart computer program ensures that experts can add their kno
How fast the city changes! That is the impression that the Bosatlas of Amsterdam leaves behind. Like a river with flowing water, different population groups are always dominant. If you look closely at the atlas, you will see a dynamic city behind the many static maps. An ordinary atlas is often so
It is not a building or house that is the most important structure in the Netherlands, but fourteen dams and flood defenses that together form the Delta Works. A beautifully designed book tells the history of this technical ingenuity. At first glance it looked like a cable car that takes you to the
We know how many tattoos he had, what diseases he had and how he died. Ötzi, the oldest human mummy ever found in Europe, has been unearthed since its discovery 25 years ago. What he was wearing, what he was carrying and who his ancestors were, is also known. But he is still under investigation. The
This summer it will be eighty years since the Spanish Civil War broke out. Despite the fact that hundreds of Dutch went to Spain to fight the fascist Franco, their actions and the civil war have largely disappeared from our history books. In 1936, Hitler organized the Olympic Games in Berlin. Not e
The history of the discovery of America is accompanied by the oppression and domination of the indigenous population by the Europeans. New research reveals a different side of early 16th-century encounters. In the caves on the Puerto Rican island of Mona, archaeologists found Spanish religious inscr
Museum Boerhaave in Leiden is temporarily closed due to a major renovation. However, the largest part of the collection cannot be found in the museum, but in the depot. NEMO Kennislink was allowed to browse the unimaginably large collection. Microscopes of all shapes and sizes. Anatomical models of
Last letter of Marie Antoinette (original text) The last letter of Marie Antoinette , written by ex Queen of France a few hours before climbing the steps of the guillotine, it is kept in the National Archives of the Hotel de Soubise. The document, in addition to being poignant, is of funda
Murderous dresses, toys from hell and stockings leading straight to the grave. The greenery in the 19th century was deadly. Imagine a scene taken out of a Jane Austen novel:a lady at the ball faints in a breathtaking (literally!) Gown, and a handsome bachelor rushes to the rescue. Victorian beau
Bartenders often have good stories to tell. In 1874, the owner of a tavern in San Francisco claimed that the US Senate had not approved his appointment as Brigadier General because no one could pronounce his name. His name was Włodzimierz Krzyżanowski. The story is most likely true, which is not t
“Ive been an anti-Semite longer than you. I could be your father in these matters. With these words, the French undersecretary of state responsible for Jewish affairs, Xavier Vallat, was lecturing the less zealous ... SS officer. On the wave of interest in Jan T. Grosss Golden Harvest, it is w