Museum Ons' Lieve Heer op Solder

Ons' Lieve Heer op Solder, which in loose translation means the Church of Our Lord in the Attic, is a 17th-century house in which one of the so-called "Secret churches." Established in 1661, it served until the mid-nineteenth century. The museum has been located in the building since 1888. This is the second, after Rijksmuseum, the oldest museum in Amsterdam.

In the 17th century, Catholics were persecuted in the Netherlands, but that law did not interfere with religiosity, as long as it did not go beyond the threshold of the house. So Catholics planted churches in private homes. Ons' Lieve Heer op Solder was one of them. Visiting the interior of the former church, you can admire the paintings of Jacob de Wit, historic organs, as well as the residential part of the former household. The kitchen décor was largely reconstructed thanks to the discovery of a septic tank in 2013, from which many ceramic dishes were extracted.

The museum is often called Amstelkring, which means a circle or group from the Amstel River. This name refers to a group of historians and conservators, thanks to whom the building survived and was restored.