Are you planning to visit Delft? Make sure to visit one of its wonderful and unique museums. Find out everything about the life of the Dutch Father of the Nation or see the work of a 19th-century artist. Or are you more into the latest technical gadgets? No matter what your age, Delft offers a wide range of museums and tourist attractions.
5x highlights of this month
Museum Prinsenhof Delft
This is where one of the key moments in Dutch history took place: the assassination of William of Orange. In 1572, William of Orange moved into the Saint Agatha convent, which was later renamed the Prinsenhof (the current Museum Prinsenhof Delft). One day, on 10 July 1584, as he walked to his bedroom/study, William was shot and killed by Balthasar Gerards. Inside the museum, you can still see the wall with the bullet holes.
Museum Paul Tétar van Elven
Would you like to visit a 19th-century artist? You can, in Delft! The 16th-century home of Paul Tétar van Elven (1823-1896) is on one of Delft’s most beautiful canals. This is where the painter and passionate art collector lived until 1892. After his death, he left the house and its entire contents to the city of Delft to turn it into a museum. The museum opened its doors in 1927 and the interior alone is worth the price of admission!
The house helps you experience what life was like in the 19th century and radiates the authentic atmosphere of the artist’s home.
Vermeer Centrum Delft
The Vermeer Centrum Delft is the only place in the world where you can admire full-scale reproductions of Vermeer’s entire oeuvre. Find out everything there is to know about Vermeer’s life, his family and work, and the city that inspired him.
Our Delft master’s particular fame shows in his astonishing talent for painting sunlight. Step inside the light studio and imagine yourself as a painter back in the Dutch Golden Age, and discover his secret.
TU Delft Hortus Botanicus
If you would enjoy strolling around and viewing 7000 unique plant and tree species, the Botanical Garden of the Technical University is a must-visit. The garden covers around 6.2 acres (2.5 hectares) and is the largest green space just outside the city centre. More than 100 years ago, in 1917, Gerrit van Iterson established the Culture Garden for Technical Crops to cultivate plants for research and education in technological applications of crops from all climate zones.
RADIUS
Are you interested in seeing an art centre located in the water tower reservoir of a stunning historic listed building? Make sure to visit RADIUS! This centre for contemporary art and ecology is housed in a five-hundred-m2 subterranean exhibition space. Its art and science programming focuses on our climate, ecology, and living environment.
At RADIUS, artists play a crucial role in shaping and criticising the narrative about the climate and ecological degradation. Its programming welcomes artists whose works address urgent ecological issues such as climate change, pollution, biodiversity degradation, environmental rights, and social justice. Curious to know more?