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Originally called the Colonial Institute, theTropenmuseum in Amsterdam informed the people of the Netherlands about the overseas parts of the Netherlands. Its building was purpose-built and it is rich with materials and imagery from the formerDutch colonies. As the former colonies became countries the expertise that existed was maintained but the organisation was re-purposed; it became theRoyal Tropical Institute with theTropenmuseum as its museum. As of April 1st 2014, the Tropenmuseum became part of a new foundation, together with theAfrika Museum in Berg en Dal andMuseum Volkenkunde in Leiden. As theNationaal Museum van Wereldculturen (National Museum of World Cultures) the institute house one of the largest ethnographical collections in the world.
Nowadays, the Tropenmuseum is one of Europe's leading ethnographic museums. The museum haspermanent exhibitions and together with thetemporary exhibitions, there is always something new to discover.
The Tropenmuseum collection contains over 369,000 pieces, of which 153,000 are Material Culture (objects, including visual collections like drawings, paintings, documents etc.) and 216,000 are photographic material (photographs, albums, slides, negatives etc.).As a whole, the Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen houses 600,000 pieces, of which 367,000 are Material Culture (objects, including 2D material) and 230,000 are photographic material.
The Tropenmuseum is a very outgoing organisation and, when it was approached to consider sharing its collection on Commons for use in the many Wikipedias, several approaches were pioneered. The absence of formality allowed for an easy and growing relationship; as both partners were eager for a success, no time was wasted. The Tropenmuseum was also the first to provide us with high resolution material for digital restoration purposes. This resulted in a growing number of featured pictures.
The continuing saga of the Tropenmuseum and Wikimedia partnership can be followedhere.
As the subject matter of the Tropenmuseum is the tropics, its collection is part of the cultural heritage of many cultures and countries. So far material from Suriname and Indonesia have made its way to Commons and these collections are finding their way in more and more articles and are consequently seen by more and more people.
All images of the Tropenmuseum are tagged with the same template and as a result they can be found in ahidden category.
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 Exhibitions at Tropenmuseum |  Tropenmuseum on Wikipedia |  Media of the Tropenmuseum |  Restored Pictures of the Tropenmuseum |  Featured Pictures of the Tropenmuseum |
