Hinderikus Lucas Visser (5 August 1923 – 11 June 2006), also known as Henk Visser, was a Dutch arms and armor collector, businessman and philanthropist. The H. L. Visser Collection, specializing in arms from the

Dutch Golden Age The Dutch Golden Age ( ) was a period in the history of the Netherlands which roughly lasted from 1588, when the Dutch Republic was established, to 1672, when the '' Rampjaar'' occurred. During this period, Dutch trade, scientific development ...

, is considered one of the largest and most significant private collections of arms and armor ever assembled. The centerpiece of Henk Visser’s collection is an exceptionally rare and important group of ivory-stocked pistols. Curator Jan Piet Puype, who documented the collection, noted that Visser possessed nearly all of the 52 known examples, making his collection unparalleled in historical and cultural significance. Today, valued at an estimated $150 million, the collection resides in the

Rijksmuseum The Rijksmuseum () is the national museum of the Netherlands dedicated to Dutch arts and history and is located in Amsterdam. The museum is located at the Museum Square in the borough of Amsterdam South, close to the Van Gogh Museum, the S ...

and

Legermuseum The Arsenal building in Delft Stone coat of arms on the Armamentarium (Oude Delft side) The Koninklijk Nederlands Legermuseum (''Royal Dutch Army Museum'') was the national museum of the Dutch Army. Until 2013, it was located in the Armamentar ...

About Henk Visser

Visser was born in

Groningen Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of ...

and became involved in the

Dutch resistance The Dutch resistance () to the History of the Netherlands (1939–1945), German occupation of the Netherlands during World War II can be mainly characterized as non-violent. The primary organizers were the Communist Party of the Netherlands, C ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, while he was still in High School. He was captured, sentenced to death and spent three months on death row before being transferred to prison camp Zuchthaus Siegburg in Germany.Interview with Visser
in the Small Arms Review, March
sequel
ibid. April 2006 After the war, he began working at the munitions factory NVM “De Kruithoorn” and traveled extensively to countries including Russia and Indonesia. During these travels he began his collection of arms and armor. Eventually, he became one of the largest international arms dealers of his time. Rijksmuseum2

Catalogs

* The Visser Collection: Arms of the Netherlands in the Collection of H. L. Visser, Volume I: Catalogue of Firearms, Swords and Related Objects, by Jan Piet Puype, * The Visser Collection: Arms of the Netherlands in the Collection of H.L. Visser, Vol. II: Ordnance, by R. Roth, Waanders, Zwolle, 1996,

References

Henk Visser (wapenverzamelaar)
in the

RKD The Netherlands Institute for Art History or RKD (Dutch: ), previously Rijksbureau voor Kunsthistorische Documentatie (RKD), is located in The Hague and is home to the largest art history center in the world. The center specializes in document ...

Verzetsherdenkingskruis in 1980

Lecture by Visser
on his collection of ivory-stocked pistols for the American Society of Arms Collectors 1923 births 2006 deaths People from Groningen (city) Dutch art collectors {{Netherlands-bio-stub