Exhibitions

Treasure Houses (working title)

18 September 2025 - 4 January 2026

The Grand Tour – Destination Italy takes you back to the 17th and 18th century, when young British aristocrats would set out on a multi-year educational journey across Europe upon completion of their studies, with Italy as the ultimate final destination. Cities like Rome, Venice and Naples were particularly popular. Today you would consider it a ‘gap year’, however back then, a Grand Tour could easily take up to three years, or even longer. Along the way, the young men learned about art, architecture and culture. They liked to take home tangible memories for their British (country) houses – but instead of photographs or postcards, they fancied a portrait of themselves, cityscapes or Roman sculptures. The true ‘must-haves’ were Canaletto’s paintings of Venice, to take home your own piece of the ‘Floating City’.

By rare exception, we have a number of masterpieces on loan from the monumental British country houses of Burghley House, Holkham Hall and Woburn Abbey. Some of these items will be on display in the Netherlands for the very first time!

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A respectable, educational journey... or was it?

Through paintings and objects, we’re showing you what it was like to undertake such a grand journey in the 17th and 18th century. Just imagine being on the road for years, with horses dying from heat exhaustion and carriages repeatedly breaking down. Were those wealthy youngsters really just dutifully studying (spoiler alert: certainly not!)? You can only imagine what happens when you bring together a bunch of wealthy young people with too much time on their hands in Europe’s finest cities. What were the highlights, what was the right way of getting your portrait done and by whom, and where did those ‘souvenirs’ end up next?

Een portret van Thomas William Coke door Pompeo Batoni, uit 1774 te zien in Holkham Hall.
1774 portrait of Thomas William Coke by Pompeo Batoni, on display at Holkham Hall.

From dining rooms to the Mauritshuis

Ordinarily, this stunning Canaletto is on display in Woburn Abbey’s dining room, the age-old family residence of the Russell family in Bedfordshire. Woburn’s renovation allows us to welcome two of Canaletto’s cityscapes to The Hague. The exhibition’s highlights also include a magnificent portrait of Thomas William Coke (Holkham Hall) by Pompeo Batoni, and work by Angelica Kauffman – the Lady Gaga of her time (Burghley House).

Canaletto, View of the Grand Canal in Venice with the Dogana and Santa Maria della Salute, 1734, Woburn Abbey.

Majestic country houses – take a look!

Made possible by:

The exhibition The Grand Tour – Destination Italy is made possible with the support of Nationale-Nederlanden, the VriendenLoterij, the Friends of the Mauritshuis Foundation, the Johan Maurits Compagnie Foundation, the M.A.O.C. Gravin van Bylandt Foundation and the Gilles Hondius Foundation. With special thanks to the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science for granting indemnity.