Hattem

Hattem is a Hanseatic town of about twelve thousand on the east bank of the IJssel opposite Zwolle, with town rights from 1299, a rampart circuit, a Gothic church and a compact centre of brick houses that survived because the town stopped growing. It has two museums that pull visitors. The Bakkerijmuseum occupies a group of old houses and covers Dutch baking with working ovens, a mill, a confectionery kitchen and demonstrations, and it is one of the better craft museums in the country. The Voerman Museum holds the work of Jan Voerman, a local painter of the IJssel landscape, and of Anton Pieck - the illustrator whose densely detailed romantic drawings of old Dutch streets defined the look of the Efteling theme park, which he designed, and which are instantly recognisable to any Dutch person. The two museums adjoin.

History

Hattem is first named around 800 in the Codex Laureshamensis, when two farmhouses here were given to Lorsch Abbey. It became a parish in 1176, with a chapel of 17.5 by 9.5 metres on the Gaedsberg, "God's mountain", and in 1299 it obtained city rights from Reinoud I of Guelders; the tower of its church dates from the 12th century (Wikipedia, Hattem).

What to look for

• A working bakery museum - ovens, a mill and demonstrations in old houses.
• The Anton Pieck collection - the illustrator who designed the Efteling.
• Jan Voerman's IJssel - the local painter's landscapes of the river.
• A Hanseatic town centre - rampart, church and brick houses from 1299 onward.

When to go

April to October. Half a day.

Good to know

Museums close on Mondays. Baking demonstrations run at set times. The town is small - half a day covers it. Zwolle across the river has more to do.

Nearby

Zwolle is five kilometres north; Elburg is west.

Key facts