Chapel of Agnes

Agnietenkapel is a 15th-century Gothic chapel of the monastery of St. Agnes. It is the place where the University of Amsterdam was founded, where university celebrations as well as academic events such as lectures and symposia are still held.

The building is located on the south side of the Oudezijds Voorburgwal canal. In the Middle Ages, this area was dominated by about twenty Roman Catholic monasteries. The chapel was built in 1470 on the site of an old temple that burned down in a great fire in 1452 and was part of the Franciscan Agnietenklooster, a monastery dedicated to Saint Agnes.

Until 1919, the building housed a primary school. Two years later, the chapel underwent renovation, after which it was transformed by the university into a museum. After renovation in 2004-2007, the museum was closed and the collection became part of the University of Amsterdam Library.