Louwman Museum

Pieter Louwman bought his first old car in 1934 and his son Evert continued, and the result is generally described as the oldest private car collection in the world - about two hundred and seventy-five vehicles, shown since 2010 in a purpose-built museum by Michael Graves on the edge of The Hague. The range is the point: the earliest is an 1887 Benz, and the collection runs through steam cars, brass-era machines, coachbuilt one-offs, racing cars, and vehicles with specific histories - the Aston Martin DB5 used in Goldfinger, Steve McQueen's Jaguar, the Spyker that is one of the oldest surviving Dutch cars. There is also a large collection of automotive art, posters and mascots, which sets it apart from most car museums. The presentation is coachbuilding and design rather than technology, so the vehicles are shown as objects.

History

The collection began in 1934, when the Dodge importer Pieter Louwman bought a 20-year-old Dodge. In 1969 the collection of Geerlig Riemer was added and moved to the new National Automobile Museum at Leidschendam, it went to Raamsdonksveer in 1981, took the name Louwman Collection on 18 April 2003, and the present museum in The Hague opened on 3 July 2010 (Wikipedia, Louwman Museum).

What's there

• An 1887 Benz onward - about 275 vehicles from the beginning of motoring.
• Cars with histories - the Goldfinger DB5 and McQueen's Jaguar among them.
• Coachbuilt one-offs - the collection weighted to design rather than engineering.
• Automotive art - posters, mascots and paintings shown alongside the cars.

When to go

All year. Half a day.

Before you go

Closed Mondays. It is out on the edge of the city and needs a bus or car. The collection is large and the labelling assumes some interest in coachbuilding. Photography rules apply in places.

Nearby

Museum Voorlinden is north at Wassenaar; the Hague centre is south.

Key facts