Gelderland Museum

The museum listed here under the name Gelderland Museum is the Stedelijk Museum Zutphen, the city museum of Zutphen, and it is the place to learn the story of one of the oldest and most important towns on the IJssel. It stands at 's Gravenhof 4, in the historic centre, and it shares its building with the Museum Henriette Polak, a small museum of art, as part of the group called Musea Zutphen. The building, with its vaulted medieval cellars, is part of the experience, since a visit takes you underground as well as through the rooms above.

Zutphen has a long history. It was a settlement from early times, received city rights in the Middle Ages and became a prosperous member of the Hanseatic League, trading along the IJssel and with the Baltic. The town was raided by the Vikings in the late ninth century, an event that the museum treats as a historical mystery, presenting evidence from the period in a way that echoes a crime scene investigation. It was also a rich place, and the museum has a theme that explores the era in which Zutphen was one of the wealthy towns of the region. Later it was a fortress in the Eighty Years' War and a seat of power for the counts and dukes of Gelderland.

The displays cover several themes. One section deals with how Zutphen became a city and what it meant to be a city dweller, using archaeology, documents and objects, and others show the splendour and civic pride of later periods, with silver, furniture and paintings. The museum holds objects of great age, among them prehistoric items, and a local collection of silver. The cellars, which belonged to the medieval house that forms part of the building, are atmospheric and are used for displays that show the early town. The museum often adds temporary exhibitions about the town and the Achterhoek region.

Opening hours are usually from late morning to late afternoon from Tuesday to Sunday, with the museum closed on Mondays, but they should be checked before a visit, together with ticket information. The museum is in the middle of a lovely town, which has a very well preserved centre. The Walburgiskerk contains a famous chained library, one of very few in the world, and the Drogenapstoren, a tower, is a well known landmark. The Zutphen city wall walk, the botanical garden, the market square and the Stadsgracht, the moat, are other attractions.

The museum suits history lovers, families and visitors who want to understand Zutphen before exploring it. Allow one to two hours, and combine it with a walk around the old town.