When one thinks of pharaohs, one quickly thinks of Egypt, the land of pyramids and the Nile. However, south of Egypt - in the Nile region of present-day Sudan - kings and pharaohs also ruled. This area was called Nubia. For a long time, this culture and society was portrayed as a colony of Egypt. Unjustly so. The new exhibition Nubia- Land of the...
Once upon a time, someone was the first. The first to walk upright, to use his front legs for something other than walking. But who was that, and what did the first human focus on? Frank Westerman takes on that question in his latest book. In a fascinating journey that starts in Leiden, and ends in Flores, or maybe actually in the Mediterranean....
The feeling of walking around in a bazaar straight out of one of the fairy tales of a thousand - and - one nights. Your eyes feast; colourful Persian carpets, atmospheric lanterns and exclusive 'merchandise'. With the new exhibition Iran- Cradle of Civilisation, the Drents Museum takes visitors to one of the oldest civilisations in the world. For the...
I want to travel with you. Taking you to the beach. Imagine sitting on the beach, as the sun's rays warm you, listening to the sound of the surf, with rising and falling waves. You sniff the salty scent. A bird flies by. The sun casts its rays on the clear blue water. A big wave slams down on the...
As a boy, I loved visiting the Egyptian department of the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden. Half in the twilight, the mysterious mummy coffins there stared at me. We are now several decades and exhibits further on. Since this week, the newest Egypt display has been open. Even in brilliant light, the collection appears to retain its fascinating power. At the same time, the museum tells in Queens...
The Rijksmuseum van Oudheden (RMO) in Leiden reopens on Tuesday 15 December after a major renovation and asbestos remediation. The museum immediately unpacks with a completely revamped Classics department: Greeks, Romans and Etruscans. There are also three small temporary exhibitions. Anyone entering the hall of the museum will not immediately notice any difference: fortunately, the Egyptian Taffeta temple is still just standing on...
The man with the firm jaws and vacant, upward-looking eyes is not particularly attractive. His face does appear on all the posters around town. However, it is something other than this robust stone head against the black background that triggers you, on the poster of the exhibition at the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam. That is the tilted O of the...
The bad news is: most myths about Carthage are nonsense. The good news is, the reality is at least as fascinating. Until 10 May 2015, the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden (RMO) in Leiden is showing the multifaceted history of a port city in present-day Tunisia, and once formidable rival of the Roman Empire. It simultaneously offers a glimpse...
In the city where Geert Mak was born and Lévi Weemoedt spent thirteen years as a Dutch teacher in front of the classroom, culture has to make way. On 6 November, the city council decided to cut back to such an extent that the BV Stadsgehoorzaal could close. The director put the theatre up for sale on marktplaats.nl. In archaeology, Vlaardingen culture is a well-known concept, but in Vlaardingen itself you will actually find less culture...
Wijbrand Schaap: 'Just one more point. Then we're almost through.' Joop Daalmeijer: 'Continue quietly, we have until half past five.' Wijbrand Schaap: 'We have a problem with real estate. A lot of inner cities are empty. Shop premises are empty, downtown office buildings are unrentable. What do the municipalities say? Put artists in them. Cost nothing, because for free rent they do...
The Council for Culture, recently reinforced with new members with a lot of management talent and business acumen, has to accept defeat. Indeed, culture minister Jet Bussermaker is disregarding a key pillar of the council's latest advice.
While 2010 was still the year of PVV positions on culture that were suddenly shared by other parties ("we are abolishing art subsidies"), the year 2011 fell under their implementation. What was striking was the ease with which regional and local administrators also wielded this same machete, as PVV spokesperson Bosma did not fail to testify. For instance, in the municipality of Almelo, 30 % went àff from...
The cut-away Metropole Orchestra is getting some air from the minister. She is willing to use the necessary friction costs to support the transition over the next four years from the Media Budget, provided it stays there. That is, the orchestra may use its own severance payments to be independently 'on the market' from 2017. As much as it shows...
Let's start again with yet another sloppiness of the Rutte government: that damned VAT measure on the arts, which are the only ones to be bounced to the 'normal' rate of 19%. VVD doesn't like it, CDA isn't happy about it, but, because tolerance specialist Martin Bosma once had to play a red toadstool in the school play, he has forever...
We had done the necessary research work ourselves, and then it turned out that something had also been sent to the House of Representatives, which contained many more figures. We asked for those figures and were shocked. After 2012, when the current arts plan expires and after a year of inaction and wait and see for the whole sector a...
English (UK) 
Nederlands 
Français
You must be logged in to post a comment.