Rijksmuseum

The Rijksmuseum is the national museum of the Netherlands, telling 800 years of Dutch history through 8,000 objects displayed across 80 galleries. Architect Pierre Cuypers designed the current building in 1885, famously centering the structure around Rembrandt's Night Watch. The museum holds the world's largest collection of Rembrandt works, with over 400 pieces including paintings, etchings, and drawings. The Night Watch alone draws 2.2 million visitors annually to its specially designed, climate-controlled space.

Beyond Rembrandt, the museum showcases the Dutch Golden Age through masterpieces by Johannes Vermeer, including Woman Reading a Letter. Frans Hals portraits, Jan Steen genre scenes, and works by Pieter de Hooch fill the galleries. The collection spans medieval times to Mondrian, though 17th-century Dutch painting remains the heart of the museum. With 2.7 million visitors in 2023, the Rijksmuseum is the most popular museum in the Netherlands.