Rijksmuseum van Oudheden

The national museum of antiquities in Leiden holds the Dutch state collections of Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Near Eastern and Dutch archaeology, built up largely in the nineteenth century when Dutch consuls and scholars were buying and excavating in Egypt - the Egyptian holding is among the more significant in Europe. The object that dominates is the Temple of Taffeh, a small sandstone temple built between 25 BC and AD 14, under Augustus, in Nubia and given to the Netherlands by Egypt in 1969 in thanks for Dutch help with the Aswan rescue operations, when the dam flooded the region and monuments were dismantled and moved. It was re-erected block by block in the museum's covered entrance hall in 1979, where the lighting is programmed to run through a day. There are mummies, the Dutch Roman material from the limes, and Greek and Etruscan collections.

History

The collection began in 1743 with the bequest of Gerard van Papenbroek to Leiden University, about 150 antiquities. The classicist Caspar Reuvens, the world's first professor of archaeology, built it up, and in August 1838, under his student Conrad Leemans, the museum opened to the public in an 18th-century mansion the university had bought in 1835 (Wikipedia, Rijksmuseum van Oudheden).

Highlights

• The Temple of Taffeh - a Nubian temple of the reign of Augustus re-erected indoors.
• A gift for the Aswan rescue - given by Egypt in 1969 for Dutch help moving monuments.
• A major Egyptian collection - among the more significant in Europe.
• Dutch Roman archaeology - the limes material from the Rhine frontier.

When to go

All year. Half a day.

Practical notes

Closed Mondays. Temporary exhibitions carry a supplement. The Egyptian human remains are displayed openly, which some visitors find uncomfortable. Busy with school groups on weekdays.

Nearby

Naturalis and Rijksmuseum Boerhaave are close; the Hortus Botanicus is nearby.

Key facts