FEATURE/Rijksmuseum Amsterdam Re-Opens after Asbestos Problems Are Solved and Museum is Declared Safe.

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FEATURE...

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 9, 2003

New Exhibition "The Ambassador, the Sultan & the Artist" from July 4

Through October 26

The Rijksmuseum Amsterdam re-opened its doors on July 4 after being partially closed since April 28, 2003 because of asbestos problems. The Gallery of Honour and the Nightwatch room were re-opened late May and management of the Rijksmuseum decided, after consulting the factory inspectorate, to open its doors on July 4 (except for the West Wing where the Print Room and Sculpture and Decorative Arts are located because of the planned renovation later this year).

The new exhibition "The Ambassador, the Sultan & the Artist - An Audience in Istanbul (1727-1744)" also opened July 4 and will run through October 26. When the Dutch ambassador Cornelis Calkoen came to the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul to present his credentials to Sultan Ahmed III, he had this important event recorded by the painter Jean Baptiste Vanmour. Together with the many depictions of court dignitaries and genre pieces by Vanmour, these paintings provide a remarkable picture of life at the Ottoman court in the first half of the eighteenth century. This exhibition is organized in cooperation with the Topkapi Sarayi Museum in Istanbul. Originally the exhibition was due to have opened on May 2, but had to be postponed due to the temporary closure of the museum.

Later this year, between December 2003 and mid-2008, the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam will undergo the most far-reaching renovations, rebuilding and restoration in its history. Please note: the museum will remain partly open to present the museum's 17th century masterpieces in the Rijksmuseum, the Masterpieces wing. In addition, the Rijksmuseum will organize various exhibitions at home and abroad, for example at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol and in De Nieuwe Kerk (New Church) in Amsterdam and show parts of the collection at various museums on long-term loan for instance in Maastricht and in Antwerpen (see www.rijksmuseum.nl)

Visual material can be downloaded in various resolutions at www.rijksmuseum.com/pressroom

For more information visit www.holland.com or contact the Netherlands Board of Tourism at:

Tel: [phone]

E-Mail: [e-mail]

Internet www.holland.com