Dutch Tile Museum

Dutch Tile Museum, Otterlo

The Dutch Tile Museum in Otterlo lies near the woods and heathland of the Veluwe. The museum has one of the largest collections of Dutch wall tiles and tile panels.

Tiles have been used for centuries in Dutch homes and farms, particularly in fireplaces, and as wall coverings to protect against damp and dirt. Tiles painted with pictures are also beautiful as decorations and can be educational and informative, even to the modern eye. Tiles show things like children games, proverbs, old costumes, ships, bible stories, shepherds, landscapes, flowers and animals. There are also tiles with stylised leaf motifs and geometrical designs.

To make tiles a workshop and a kiln were needed. Tiles were mainly decorated by hand, a craft that was sometimes undertaken by real artists. There is much to see in the museum about the painting and firing of tiles and the historical development of Dutch tiles is also shown. The earliest tiles in Holland were painted in polychrome and only later blue or purple painted tiles became fashionable. More modern tiles are mechanically printed in colour or still painted by hand. Apart from single tiles, the museum collection also has tile panels and large polychrome tile pictures.

From Ede-Wageningen Station followed by bus stop "Raadhuis" near the city centre bus #108 leaves every hour. From bus stop "Rotonde" in Otterlo it's about a 10 minutes walk to the museum.