Model ships

The National Maritime Museum in Amsterdam offers a selection of beautiful model ships for your nautical collection. The model ships in this collection are all replicas of iconic Dutch seafaring vessels from the past.

The botter is a fast sailboat that is perfectly suited for sailing the shallow waters of the Dutch Zuiderzee. These boats have a flat bottom and angular bilges that turn into rounded sides.

The lemsteraak is a typical sailing vessel from the northern Dutch province of Friesland – a fact that is evident in its name, as it is named after the Frisian town of Lemmer. In the past, these boats were used for catching herring in the northern Dutch waters of the Waddenzee and de Zuiderzee.

The Christiaan Brunings is an icebreaker that was built in 1900 for the national Department of Waterways and Public Works (Rijkswaterstaat). Rather uniquely for the time, this boat was built with a very luxurious interior to allow her to serve as an executive vessel as well. She was named after Christiaan Brunings, the Dutch marine engineer recognized as the founding father of the department.

Last but not least, the model ships of the East Indiaman and the Marco Polo are based off two famous large vessels moored in the port of the National Maritime Museum. The impressive East Indiaman is the eyecatcher of the museum. Fun to know: you can even buy a cheese board made of wood from the old mast of this handsome ship!