Historisch Museum De Bevelanden

About the museum

The museum's beginnings go back to around 1860: at that time the town of Goes separated its historical objects from the archival records and displayed them in an antiquities room in the town hall. On 7 October 1930 the museum of Zuid- and Noord-Beveland opened in the Gothic house on Turfkade, no longer covering only Goes but the entire Bevelanden region.

After 1968 a new director gave the collection fresh impetus. From 1974 the museum used the former citizens' orphanage on Singelstraat, which had been created in 1627 from a convent of the Black Sisters and closed as an orphanage in 1940. The museum was initially run by an association of several municipalities, and since 2011 by a foundation.

Between 2002 and 2005 the building was thoroughly converted and given the name Historisch Museum De Bevelanden; in 2016 it was entered in the Dutch museum register. In recent years it has specialised in historical textiles, visible for example in the marking cloths (merklappen), embroidered and darned learning cloths, the oldest of which in the house dates from 1720, and in the Zeeland costumes.

Highlights

• Former orphanage with the exhibition "Waar Wezen Waren"
• Merklappen: historical embroidery and darning cloths
• Hall "Mooi Bevelands Goed" with life-size dolls in Zeeland costumes
• 17th-century civic guard paintings with costumes tailored as replicas
• Museum café with free lockers

Permanent exhibitions

• Waar Wezen Waren – The room tells the story of the orphanage established in 1627, with themes of school, cooking and washing; a film guides you through the scenes.
• Merklappen – Historical embroidery and darning cloths that young women once made to learn the alphabet and needlework; the current theme is houses and household goods in cross-stitch.
• Mooi Bevelands Goed – Life-size dolls in the various Zeeland costumes, with accessories such as collars, caps and bags, plus a film about wearing the costume.

Founded

1930

Admission & discounts

Free with Museumkaart.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

All floors can be reached by lift for wheelchairs. A loan wheelchair is available for users of large mobility scooters; reservation at info@hmdb.nl or +31 113 22 88 83.

Kids & families

Family card for two adults with up to three children; school programmes for all age groups of primary school.

Getting there & parking

There are many bicycle racks in front of the museum.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Lockers

Museum café with drinks and snacks. For climate-control and security reasons, bags are not allowed in the museum; free lockers are available.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit