The Legacy of the Netherlands from Kossmann.dejong on Vimeo.

The Legacy of the Netherlands is a joint initiative of the Koninklijke Bibliotheek (Royal Library) and the National Archives. The story is told of 1,000 years of Dutch history, language and culture, based around important items from both collections. The exhibition links both the collections and architecture of the two institutions.

CONCEPT/DESIGN
The concept was to turn this area into a modern treasure chamber. By analogy with archetypal treasure chambers in comic strips or adventure films, the visitor is taken by surprise upon entering by a vast number of objects in an atmosphere of mystery: treasures as far as the eye can see. Forty showcases, each containing one special object, are placed close to each other, allowing the visitor to wander between them. In this relative chaos, a huge projection wall provides structure. Furthermore, use is made of various media such as sound, light and touch screens. This makes this treasure chamber not only a very unique collection of beautiful books and documents, but above all an amazing experience. Due to the great value of the exhibited items, special attention was paid to security of the showcases. Various prototypes were tested for break-in and impact resistance. It can be said without exaggeration that these showcases are among the most secure in the Netherlands.

video: Tungsten Studio