A Visit to Museum Het Schip

Museum Het Schip (The Ship), dedicated to the Amsterdam School of architecture, is located in the Spaarndammerbuurt (Spaarndam district), at Oostzaanstraat 45, north of the Westerpark. It is called Het Schip after the social housing complex it is housed in (built between 1914 and 1921), designed by Michel de Klerk, one of the main exponents of this architectural style. A perfectly preserved and restored post office in the same style (from the 1920s) is part of the museum. I visited Museum Het Schip in July 2021.

Post office from 1920 in housing complex Het Schip, Amsterdam

The post office from 1920 on the “bow” of housing complex Het Schip, part of the museum (July 2021).

When the post office in the block closed in 1999, the museum was initially housed there. In 2016 the museum got a permanent exposition space in the former school building, which is part of the complex. The former school’s playground now shows a collection of old street furniture in Amsterdam School style. Daily 45 minute tours inside the museum are included in the admission price. Next to the permanent Amsterdam School exposition, the museum also organizes longer tours through the neighborhood on Saturdays.

Post office window on the side of the Oostzaanstraat, Amsterdam

Detail of the post office window on the side of the Oostzaanstraat (July 2021).

On Sundays there are tours by the museum in the Scheepvaarthuis (Shipping House) on Prins Hendrikkade — another fine example of Amsterdam School architecture — which since 2007 is Grand Hotel Amrâth Amsterdam. The museum also has an annex in the Amsterdam-Zuid district since 2012, located in housing complex De Dageraad (The Dawn) on Burgemeester Tellegenstraat 128.