Take a virtual tour of 17th century architecture. Dutch Doll’s House——

Last week the Rijksmuseum opened a new exhibition, 17th century homean immersive look at family life in the Dutch Golden Age. It consists of nine diorama-style galleries designed by artist Steef de Jong, allowing visitors to experience life in a 17th-century home from morning to night.

The exhibition focuses on the lives of different groups of people, such as the Boudaen Courten family from Zeeland. Many items from members of the family have survived, including gilded furniture, portraits and one very remarkable relic: a bladder stone removed during a major medical operation. All these objects will be on display together for the first time in centuries. We also get a glimpse into the world of Utrecht-based artist Joachim Wtewael. In 1628 he painted a portrait of his daughter Eva, seated at a table that still exists today. The painting depicts Eva as the epitome of the ideal housewife, with a sewing rug on her lap and a prayer book on the table. Unfortunately, her vision for the future never became a reality. She died seven years after the painting was completed and never married. The painting will be displayed alongside the table and matching linen cabinet.

The exhibition shows many aspects of the lifestyle of people in the 17th century. Together with the West Frisian Archeology Organization, curators studied the contents of a 17th-century sinkhole in the home of Mayor Horn and his Sonks family. Cooking utensils, crockery and food waste tell us the story of the food on families’ tables and provide detailed insights into their eating habits. In contrast, cesspools found on Amsterdam’s Freubourg Island suggest that Portuguese immigrants brought their own pottery and their own flavors with them to the city.

Petronella Altman’s Doll’s House is the centerpiece of the exhibition. Created between the late 17th and early 18th centuries (ca. 1686 – ca. 1710), dolls’ houses are not toys or theaters. There were some small dolls in there, unfortunately most of them are now lost, but they were not for children. It is a carefully rendered miniature version of a wealthy residence of the period. From sewing scissors to wallpaper to real music books, every possible detail is included.

To celebrate this masterpiece of miniaturization, the museum has created a masterpiece of digital experience: an online tour of the home guided by the voice of Helena Bonham Carter. The online exhibition takes you into every room of the dollhouse. It’s like “Journey,” except instead of the body of a wounded scientist, you’re shrunk to the elegant interiors of 17th-century Holland. Artwork on the walls, wood paneling, wicker chairs, cushions, door handles, 1cm teacups, a porcelain spittoon on the floor next to the game table, a backgammon game in progress, books, a curio cabinet full of small shells, fruit on the kitchen counter, a cellar full of items hidden in drawers, baskets of peat coals burned for cooking and heating, a working threaded spinning wheel, monogrammed linen napkins, all details are stunningly realistically rendered. When you’re inside the house, you can’t even tell it’s miniature.

After the introduction, you can click on each room to navigate, or you can play the entire tour and take a tour with Helena Bonham Carter. I highly recommend the latter as the planned route is cleverly laid out, with consistent through lines and clear transitions.