Next to the Maritiem Museum Rotterdam, there is a small boat on dry land that has a sign advertising something like “Rope Museum – Free Entrance”. I was already curious to see what a “rope museum” showcases, but then you add the free part, and there’s no reason not to check it out.
Once inside the boat (watch your head in some places) we were greeted by an old Dutch sea dog that is more than eager to tell the story of his life, of the boat, and of the rope crafts you find inside if you say so much as a “hello”. He is there voluntarily, speaks perfect English, and will show you around the boat and tell you the stories about the cargo, the travels, etc. That he knows well since, apparently, he and the boat have some symbiotic relationship.
Rope Museum - Mask made with rope
Honestly, I think the name “Rope Museum” doesn’t do justice to the experience you get once inside. For instance, our sea dog guide will take you to the sleeping chambers and describe how whole families would sleep there, eat there, and spend days and days, through calm and through torment, to transport things from one place to the other as their way of sustaining themselves. It’s a perfect introduction for how rope plays an important part in the business. You will find a lot of artwork made with rope spread around the boat, some of them gifts, some of them made by other sea men themselves as something to help kill some time while in open water.
Rope Museum - Chessboard made with rope
And then you have the opportunity to make some rope on your own. You might think, as I did, “isn’t rope already rope?” But you can learn how to make stronger rope, for example a stronger twisted rope to anchor the ship to the dock. But let’s let our sea dog speak about it, as we premiere our first Atlas Parasite video. Enjoy!
Rope Museum
Leuvehaven 2
3011 EA Rotterdam, Netherlands
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