The Museumplein (; ) is a

public space A public space is a place that is open and accessible to the general public. Roads (including the pavement), public squares, parks, and beaches are typically considered public space. To a limited extent, government buildings which are open to ...

in the Museumkwartier neighbourhood of the

Amsterdam-Zuid Amsterdam-Zuid (; ''Amsterdam South'') is a borough (''stadsdeel'') of Amsterdam, Netherlands. The borough was formed in 2010 as a merger of the former boroughs Oud-Zuid and Zuideramstel. The borough has almost 138,000 inhabitants (2013). With ...

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Located at the Museumplein are three major museums – the

Rijksmuseum The Rijksmuseum () is the national museum of the Netherlands dedicated to Dutch arts and history and is located in Amsterdam. The museum is located at the Museum Square in the borough of Amsterdam South, close to the Van Gogh Museum, the ...

Van Gogh Museum The Van Gogh Museum () is a Dutch art museum dedicated to the works of Vincent van Gogh and his contemporaries in the Museum Square in Amsterdam South, close to the Stedelijk Museum, the Rijksmuseum, and the Concertgebouw. The museum opene ...

, and

Stedelijk Museum The Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam (; Municipal Museum Amsterdam), colloquially known as the Stedelijk, is a museum for modern art, contemporary art, and design located in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

– and the concert hall

Concertgebouw The Royal Concertgebouw ( nl, Koninklijk Concertgebouw, ) is a concert hall in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The Dutch term "concertgebouw" translates into English as "concert building". Its superb acoustics place it among the finest concert halls in ...

. The area was originally a wax candle factory and marshy meadows. Construction began following the completion of the Rijksmuseum in 1885, with a street plan based on the design of

Pierre Cuypers Petrus Josephus Hubertus "Pierre" Cuypers (16 May 1827 – 3 March 1921) was a Dutch architect. His name is most frequently associated with the Amsterdam Central Station (1881–1889) and the Rijksmuseum (1876–1885), both in Amsterdam. ...

, the museum's celebrated architect. The area was the location of the

International Colonial and Export Exhibition The International Colonial and Export Exhibition (Dutch: ''Internationale Koloniale en Uitvoerhandel Tentoonstelling''; French: ''Exposition Universelle Coloniale et d'Exportation Générale'') was a colonial exhibition (a type of World's Fair ...

in 1883. The Museumplein was reconstructed after a design by the

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

/ Danish

landscape architect A landscape architect is a person who is educated in the field of landscape architecture. The practice of landscape architecture includes: site analysis, site inventory, site planning, land planning, planting design, grading, storm water manage ...

Sven-Ingvar Andersson in 1999. It now includes underground parking spaces and an underground supermarket. In the winter, the pond can be transformed into an artificial

ice skating Ice skating is the self-propulsion and gliding of a person across an ice surface, using metal-bladed ice skates. People skate for various reasons, including recreation (fun), exercise, competitive sports, and commuting. Ice skating may be per ...

area. The space is also used for (mass) events such as

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...

s, celebrations, and demonstrations and

Armin Van Buuren Armin Jozef Jacobus Daniël van Buuren ( , ; born 25 December 1976) is a Dutch DJ and record producer from Leiden, South Holland. Since 2001, he has hosted '' A State of Trance'' (ASOT), a weekly radio show, which is broadcast to nearly 40&n ...

honoured The Dutch Team at Museumplein in 2010 by playing

Swedish House Mafia Swedish House Mafia (SHM) is a Swedish house music supergroup consisting of Axwell, Steve Angello and Sebastian Ingrosso. The group officially formed in late 2008, were placed at number ten on the '' DJ Mag'' Top 100 DJ Poll 2011, and have ...

. In July 2017 the

2017 FIBA 3x3 Europe Cup The 2017 FIBA 3x3 Europe Cup was the third edition of the 3x3 Europe Championships, organized by FIBA Europe, and was held between 7 and 9 July 2017, at the Museumplein in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. This 3x3 basketball competition featured sep ...

, the European

3x3 basketball 3x3 basketball (pronounced ''three-ex-three'') is a variation of basketball played three-a-side, with one backboard and in a half-court setup. According to an ESSEC Business School study commissioned by the International Olympic Committee, 3x3 ...

tournament, was held at the Museumplein. The main "I AMsterdam" sign was also located here in front of the Rijksmuseum, until 4 December 2018, when it was removed at the behest of the city council. The sculpture "Self Portrait of a Dreamer" by Joseph Klibansky was exhibited within the pond from 26 June 2018 to 28 Aug 2018.

Surrounding buildings

US Consulate General Amsterdam Museumplein Dec 2013

* Consulate General of the United States *

* House of Bols * Diamond Museum * Coster Diamonds *

* Moco Museum (opened at the end of May 2016)

References

External links

Museum Square 1891-2020

Museum District in Amsterdam
Amsterdam-Zuid Museum districts Squares in Amsterdam Odonyms referring to a building World's fair sites in Europe Basketball venues in the Netherlands {{NorthHolland-geo-stub