Multatuli Museum Smallest Museum in Amsterdam

The Multatuli Museum is located in the house where the author Multatuli, pen name of Eduard Douwes Dekker, was born. This museum is the smallest museum in Amsterdam and consists of only one room with memorabilia of Multatuli. In this one-room museum, you will see his books, his writing desk, his chaise longue and other furniture. You will also get an impression of how the well-to-do middle class lived in the nineteenth century and what their homes looked like.

Who was Multatuli?

Multatuli, pseudonym for Eduard Douwes Dekker (1820-1887) worked as a civil servant in the Dutch East Indies and became famous for his novel ‘Max Havelaar’ or the Coffee Auctions of the Dutch Trading Company, written in 1859, in which he denounced the colonial government.

Not only did Multatuli criticize Dutch policy in the former Dutch East Indies in ‘Max Havelaar’, he also broke with all literary conventions. He tells the story from different points of view.

The Multatuli Museum

This smallest museum in Amsterdam shows the life and works of Douwes Dekker. His personal belongings are in the museum room; many letters and objects from his life, many of which refer to the Dutch East Indies. His pen is waiting on his desk to be used. Bookcases bulging with books stand against the wall. His chaise longue is by the window. The urn on the mantelpiece contains his ashes.

The Multatuli Statue

A statue of Multatuli stands on Torensluis, the widest bridge in Amsterdam. This bronze bust was made by Hans Baayens and unveiled by Queen Beatrix on the hundredth anniversary of Douwes Dekker’s death in 1987.

Address: Multatuli Museum, Korsjespoortsteeg 20, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 12:00-17:00

Douwes Dekker’s Museum is the smallest museum in Amsterdam and it will take you thirty minutes at most to see it. If you go to the Rijksmuseum you can easily spend the whole day there and still you may not have seen everything. Tickets for the Rijksmuseum must be bought online as you will have to indicate your time of arrival. Buy here your ticket and time slot for the Rijksmuseum.