The (; en, Jewish Museum), part of the Jewish Cultural Quarter, is a museum in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

dedicated to

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...

ish history,

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...

and religion, in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and worldwide. It is the only museum in the Netherlands dedicated to

Jewish history Jewish history is the history of the Jews, and their nation, religion, and culture, as it developed and interacted with other peoples, religions, and cultures. Although Judaism as a religion first appears in Greek records during the Hellenisti ...

History

The Joods Museum opened its doors on 24 February 1932 and was initially housed at the

Waag A weighhouse or weighing house is a public building at or within which goods are weighed. Most of these buildings were built before 1800, prior to the establishment of international standards for weights, and were often a large and representative ...

(Weighing House) on

Nieuwmarkt Nieuwmarkt (; en, New Market) is a square in the centre of Amsterdam, Netherlands. The surrounding area is known as the Lastage neighborhood. It is situated in the borough of Amsterdam-Centrum. The square is considered part of Amsterdam's Chin ...

square. Following the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

occupation of the Netherlands in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the museum was forced to close and much of the collection was lost. The museum reopened its doors in 1955. In 1987, it moved to a new location, occupying four former synagogues on Jonas Daniël Meijerplein square, across the road from the Snoge or Portuguese Synagogue (for which joint tickets are sold). The museum was recognized in 1989 when it received the Council of Europe Museum Prize, awarded for a combination of the presentation of the collection and the outward appearance of the buildings. A seven-year renovation of the museum was completed in 2007.

Collection and exhibitions

The museum's collection includes some 11,000 art objects, ceremonial objects and historical objects, only some five percent of which is on display at any one time. It has two permanent exhibitions as well as regularly changing temporary exhibitions. The exhibition on the ground floor focuses on Jewish traditions and customs. The presentation is inspired by the former interior of the synagogue. Ceremonial objects from the museum collection are shown in locations where they used to be placed in the synagogue. This gives visitors a sense of the surroundings in which they find themselves and enables them to taste the original synagogue atmosphere. In 2014 the museum presented an exclusive exhibition of Roman Vishniac's photos. The photographer is famous for capturing the life of Jews during the world war. The galleries of the Great Synagogue feature a new presentation on the history of the Jews of the Netherlands from 1600 to 1890. The central theme is what it meant to be a Jew in the Netherlands in this period. Stories about how Jews arrived in the Netherlands, the extent to which they managed to integrate, the cultural interchange with non-Jewish countrymen and the preservation of their identity resonate today in contemporary situations and debates. File:Amsterdam Mahzor, 058V.jpg, '' Amsterdam Machzor'', written in

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

c. 1250, is one of the earliest illuminated manuscripts of Ashkenazi origin. File:WLANL - legalizefreedom - levensboom.jpg, ''

Tree of Life The tree of life is a fundamental archetype in many of the world's mythological, religious, and philosophical traditions. It is closely related to the concept of the sacred tree.Giovino, Mariana (2007). ''The Assyrian Sacred Tree: A Hist ...

'' by Eli Content (1943), Hermine van Does (stained glass manufacturer) File:WLANL - jankie - (De rouwdagen) De treurdagen, Jan Voerman (ca.1884).jpg, ''The mourning days'' by Jan Voerman (ca. 1884)

References

External links

* {{Authority control History museums in the Netherlands Jewish Dutch history Jewish museums Jews and Judaism in Amsterdam Museums established in 1932 Museums in Amsterdam The Holocaust in the Netherlands Jewish organisations based in the Netherlands Synagogues preserved as museums

History

Collection and exhibitions

See also

References

External links