Last Thursday I went to Amsterdam to visit two canal house museums. Oddly enough, I had never been to either museum. It was a glorious sunny day, perfect for strolling though the city.
Standing on the Keizersgracht, looking at the famous Westertoren (the tower of the Wester Church).
We started at the Museum Geelvinck, which is said to be a private city palace located on the Herengracht in Amsterdam. The house did not seem very palatial to me, although the rooms are very nice. Doesn't this Blue Room remind you of the Blue Salon in my Canal House?
The garden of the house is beautiful. It is based on 18th century garden designs. The brown brick building in the background is the coach house.
The second canal house we visited was Museum van Loon, located on the Keizersgracht in Amsterdam. The photo above shows the rear facade. I loved this house. It was built in 1672 and the first owner was the Dutch painter Ferdinand Bol, a student of Rembrandt.
This house also has a gorgeous garden based on 18th century design. The building with the blue pediment in the background is the coach house to the main house.
The coach house is visible from the main house and, to ensure a pleasant view from the house, it was therefore beautifully executed in a classical style.
When we entered the garden from the kitchen area, this huge bird house attracted my attention. The 'Birchhouse for Van Loon' was made in 2006 by Irene Fortuyn. It is a 1/24th scale (my guess) reproduction of the van Loon Canal House in birch wood.
Although the ' Birchhouse' is not furnished, it has rather lovely detailed interiors which are based on the real house. I thought it was such a fun structure. Judging by the slight damage to the house, it looked like it actually had been outside for a while.
The staircase in the van Loon house is beautiful! Very delicately decorated in Rococo style, it looked like it would charm and impress any visitor.
The complex design of the stair railing is just gorgeous!
I loved the splash of colour provided by the wonderful Rococo wall clock and bracket.
I would love a similar clock in the staircase of my Canal House, but I don't think I have ever seen anything like this in miniature.