The Dutch National Collection, Collectie Nederland, is being used for the first time to sketch a coherent picture of the evolution of silver in the provence of Holland and the context in which the developments took place.

About the project

In the Early Modern Period the province of Holland had the largest concentration of gold and silversmiths in Europe. Amsterdam had more than 300 of them, which gave it the absolute ascendancy, but just as many worked in the other 12 centres put together.

Extensive local and national archival research combined with an in-depth study of the silver in the Collectie Nederland makes it possible to compare the developments in the 13 towns precisely. The result provides a far more accurate picture of the interplay between the towns, the different subsidiary markets and the objects that were made for them.

Aim of the project

Stede-stemmen, Silver in Holland 1502-1813 is the first book to tell the story of Holland silver in all its diversity. The essays shine a light on the different towns and examine the local gold and silver culture with the aid of prize pieces from all museums in The Netherlands. More than 200 entries present the highlights from the Rijksmuseum’s collection, the largest of any museum in the world.

Related publications

staff

D.J. Biemond
d.biemond@rijksmuseum.nl
Curators of Metals

Partners and sponsors

This project is supported by the A.E. van Kampen Fonds/Rijksmuseum Fonds and the Ton en Judy van Heuzen-Dijksma Fonds/ Rijksmuseum Fonds.