Guest Author - Susan Kramer

Here are close up views of the first and second floor of the doll house Petronella Dunois had made c. 1676, one year before her wedding in 1677.


Of note are the silver miniatures in the kitchen. The Dutch were renowned then as silversmiths. In the 1500s the port of Amsterdam, the city where this doll house was located, was the largest and most important port in the world. And, it remained so until the entrance to Amsterdam was blocked from the North Sea by the building of a dike across the northern tip of North Holland - blocking large ships from getting to Amsterdam harbor.

This dike created the inner sea, know today as the Ijsselmeer. Here is a photo of the dike holding back the North Sea on the left and the inner sea bordering Amsterdam on the right. This photo was taken on a bus crossing the dike from the west - North Holland, to the east - Friesland.



One of the most interesting points I'd like to comment on is that doll houses in this time period were not for children to play with, rather they were to entertain the mother and her friends. This doll house is in the collection of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Antique Dutch Doll Houses

1. Antique Dutch Doll House of Petronella Oortman
2. Painting of Petronella Oortman Doll House by Jacob Appel
3. Antique Dutch Doll House of Petronella Dunois
4. Antique Dutch Doll House of Petronella Dunois - Close Up Views
5. Antique Dutch Doll House of Petronella Dunois - Attic Laundry Room
6. Antique Dutch Doll House of Petronella Dunois - Kitchen View

Resource information - Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Article and photo credits Susan Kramer