Museum Ons’ Lieve Heer op Solder For Children
Ons Lieve Heer op Solder also has a couple of activities for children from 5 to 10 years old. Little children can go on a quest or a scavenger hunt in search of the ‘Lieveheerbeestje op Solder’. This is available for only 1 euro at the reception. For children from 10 to 12 years old, there is a free audio tour “Feest! op Solder” or “Party! On Solder” in English. During this audio tour, the children learn more about the origins of Christian holidays, such as Sinterklaas, Christmas, Easter and Pentecost.
History of the Museum Ons’ Lieve Heer op Solder
The corner building on the Oudezijds Voorburgwal dates from around 1630 but was radically rebuilt in 1661 – 1663 by the new owner, the Roman Catholic stockbroker Jan Hartman, whose son Cornelis studied as a priest. Amsterdam had just been retaken by Protestants led by William of Orange from the Spanish Catholics who ruled over the Dutch Republic. Although the new Dutch Republic was a Protestant government, they agreed that everyone should be allowed the freedom of conscience. It meant that people of all faiths were allowed to worship anyhow they saw fit as long as they kept it within closed doors. This tolerance also contributed to the prosperity of Amsterdam in the 16th century as lots of merchants flocked to the city with their businesses which further strengthened the economy. One of these merchants was Jan Hartman, a Catholic faithful. Since Catholics and people of other faiths were allowed to practice their faith behind closed doors, a lot of house churches started to spring up in Amsterdam. Jan Hartman bought the building on the Oudezijds, established the stocking shop in the front house and a beautiful reception room on the main floor of the back house. In the attic, he set up a house church which was arranged over two back houses in the alley. It is the only one of the formerly numerous Amsterdam attic churches that have been preserved in almost their original state. The successive owners continue to rent the church, even if they themselves were Protestants, to Roman Catholic clergy.
The church was referred to as the Deer (after the coat of arms of Hartman) or also called Het Haantje (a corruption of Heintje, of the Heintje Hoekssteeg). The current name Ons ’Lieve Heer op Solder dates from the nineteenth century. The house church was dedicated to St. Nicholas, who until the Alteration of 1578 (when the city government was taken over by Calvinists) had been the patron saint of the Oude Kerk and of the city of Amsterdam. In 1887, the Sint Nicolaaskerk on the Prins Hendrikkade was opened, the third consecutive church dedicated to Sint Nicolaas. The house church had now lost its function and threatened to disappear. Thanks to the Amstelkring association, consisting of Roman Catholic Amsterdammers, the building with the house church was saved and in 1888 furnished as the Roman Catholic Museum in Amsterdam, now the Amstelkring Museum. The museum gives a picture of a rich merchant’s house with a Roman Catholic house church that was decorated on the upper floors.
The 17th-Century House
The original layout of a seventeenth-century residence with the church above is particularly well preserved. The complex consists of a front house and two original rear houses, each with an entrance on the Heintje Hoekssteeg. In the eighteenth century, the neck gable made way for the current spout façade, the wooden lower part with windows for a stone lower part. The entrance, accessible via a sidewalk, gives access to the front house. The front room was originally used as a retail space, but in 1770 it was converted into a living room. The marble fireplace in Louis XV style dates from that time, with the characteristic asymmetrical shell in the middle. The original interior fireplace, behind the retail space, still has a beamed ceiling from around 1630.
The room on the first floor is a high room that covered two original floors. It was initially given a sophisticated, classic seventeenth-century design with the fireplace as an eye-catcher. The oak fireplace rests on white-veined black marble pilasters and helical columns. The chimneypiece is a Dutch copy of the “Presentation in the Temple” by the Venetian painter Andrea Schiavone.
The Church in the Attic
The house church covers three floors and extends over both back houses. Catholic churchgoers could reach the church through an entrance on the Heintje Hoeksteeg. From there a spiral staircase led up. There was also a private entrance from the house, a stairway dating from the seventeenth century. Halfway up the stairs was a built-in bedroom in front of the curate.
By creating large openings in two successive beams, a high church space has been created with two galleries. The galleries are interconnected by iron tie rods which in turn are attached to rods attached to the hood. Because the house is on the corner of the Heintje Hoekssteeg, the narrow church space receives light not only through the facade but also through the side wall.
By creating large openings in two successive beams, a high church space has been created with two galleries. The galleries are interconnected by iron tie rods which in turn are attached to rods attached to the hood. Because the house is on the corner of the Heintje Hoekssteeg, the narrow church space receives light not only through the facade but also through the side wall.
The current baroque interior is largely eighteenth-century. The visual centre of the room is the richly executed altar from around 1715 that is framed by marble columns and stucco. The altarpiece with the “Baptism in the Jordan”, painted by Jacob de Wit in 1736, forms thematically a unity with the stucco above it where God the Father and the Holy Spirit are depicted, surrounded by clouds and cherubim. The painting could be exchanged for other representations in accordance with the liturgical celebrations of the church year, Christmas, Easter and Pentecost. Due to the limited space, the mahogany pulpit could be ingeniously turned away in one of the pillars of the altar. To the left of the main altar, in the second annexe, is the side altar dedicated to Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ. The organ opposite the main altar was made especially for this room in 1794. The organ builder was Hendrik Meyer who applied his monogram to the back of the organ. The bellows are located in a cupboard in the corner from where a wooden tube led the air to the organ.
Museum Café
The museum café is on the first floor. In this open, brightly lit room, visitors can enjoy a cup of coffee or tea with a delicious piece of cake, a delicious lunch or a special beer from the Prael brewery. The wall-wide curtain is a design by Theo Tienhooven. This wall curtain is based on the authentic colours found in the historic building and brought back during the restoration. The café is easily accessible by stairs and an elevator. Entrance to the museum café is only possible with a museum ticket. The museum café is open from 10:30 AM to 5:00 PM and on Sunday from 1:00 PM to 5:30 PM.
Museum Shop
The museum shop is located on the ground floor and offers a wide range of books, gifts and souvenirs. The store is easily accessible. Among other things, the publication Ons ’Lieve Heer op Solder is available in the museum shop. It’s the perfect place to shop for your unique souvenirs.
