Assen is a medium sized city located in Drenthe Province, Netherlands. Located about 30 minutes south of Groningen, Assen is home to world class attractions to include the TT Circuit Assen and Drents Museum. The Drents Museums has famous art collections, the Netherland’s largest doll house, and amazing historical artifacts. The most interesting and fascinating department at the Drents Museum was the Archaeology department. The primary reason for visiting this museum was to witness the several bog bodies on display and pay a visit to the Yde Girl, one of the world’s most famous bog bodies.
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Assen is the capital of the province of Drenthe in the Netherlands. Drenthe is located in the northeastern portion of the Netherlands. As a reference it is about a 2-hour drive from Amsterdam and a 30-minute drive from Groningen. With a population of around 65,000, Assen is big enough to support a downtown area with plenty of things to do and see but small enough where visitors won’t feel overwhelmed.
History of Assen
The written history of Assen dates back to the 13th century. The Marienkamp Abbey which was originally built in the Dutch town of Coevorden was moved to Assen.
The abbey was first built near Coevorden after the Battle of Ane in which peasants from Drenthe slaughtered the Bishop of Utrecht and his loyal army in 1227. Because of the landscape and weather in the area, the abbey was under constant threat of flooding, so the abbey was moved to a more ideal location. Eventually, a small city began to grow around the abbey and this became the city of Assen.
Assen Today
Today, Assen is a modern city that still has a lot of Dutch charm. Assen is most known for the TT Circuit Assen and the Drents Museum.
Once a year motorsport enthusiasts gather in Assen for the TT Circuit Assen which holds the Grand Prix Motorcycle Races. This is one of the world’s best and most popular racing circuits for motorcycles and has been called the “Cathedral of Motorcycle Racing.”
If you are visiting Assen and have no desire to visit the TT Circuit Assen or if museums are not your thing, then there are still plenty of things to do and see.
- Why not rent a bike and do what the Dutch do best? Cycle around the city. After all, Assen is really flat which makes for easy and enjoyably cycling.
- Visit in November and attend the Dance Festival.
- Walk the canals. Outside of the town center, there are several canals lined with beautiful traditional homes.
- Explore the downtown area. The architecture of the buildings around downtown are photo worthy!
- Do some shopping. There are plenty of department stores and local shops.
- Grab a bite to eat, there are so many options in the downtown area. We had lunch at a restaurants called Queens Lunchroom. This restaurant made refreshing sandwiches and wraps that we both enjoyed!
The Drents Museum in Assen
The Drents Museum in Assen is probably the most visited attraction in Assen. The Drents Museum is an art and history museum that first opened its doors in 1854.
According to the Drents Museum website, they have over 90,000 items and are considered to have one of the Netherlands largest collections. The permanent exhibits at the Drents Museum include the Archaeology, Art 1885-1935, Contemporary Realism, and the History of Drenthe exhibits.
There are also temporary exhibits at the Drents Museum. A few previous exhibits include Viva la Frida and the Nebra Sky Disc. When we visited the Drents Museum in Assen, they had a temporary exhibit called Under the Spell of Mount Ararat. This exhibit had historical items and treasures on display from the History Museum of Armenia.
One of my favorite exhibits at the Drents Museum was the collection they had on Archaeology, in particular the exhibit they had on bog bodies. The archaeological exhibit has mammoth bones, items found that were used by Neanderthals, objects discovered in ancient burial mounds, the world’s oldest boat, and bog bodies.
Drents Museum Admission and Hours
Admission
€15 for Adults
Youth (0-17) are Free
Hours
Open Tuesday through Sunday 10:00 am until 6:00 pm
Closed on the following holidays:
King’s Day, Christmas Day, and New Years Day
For more information view the Drents Museum Website.
Bog Bodies
Like visiting the Mummy Museum in Guanajuato I have an odd fascination with mummies and a morbid curiosity. The main reason for visiting Assen was to see the Archaeology exhibit at the Drents Museum, mainly to see the bog bodies.
So, what exactly are bog bodies?
Bog bodies are mummified bodies that have been discovered in bogs, primarily in Northern Europe. Most bog bodies discovered are thousands of years old and so well preserved, that a few of them have been mistaken for recent murder victims. For instance, the Tollund Man was discovered in a bog near Silkeborg, Denmark. When peat cutters discovered his corpse, they believed he was a recent victim of homicide. When found, the Tollund Man, still had facial hair, eye lashes, and wrinkles. Turns out, the homicide part may have been true but he died around 405-380 BC. He was found with a noose around his neck, which seems to be common among other bog bodies.
Many of the bog bodies discovered have been incredibly well preserved. This is partly caused by the layers of dead moss which is very acidic and lacks oxygen.
Some other notable bog bodies include the Borremose Man and the Grauballe Man of Denmark, the Husbake Man, Osterby Man, and Rendswühren Man, from Germany and the Yde Girl from the Netherlands.
The Yde Girl
The Yde Girl is a bog body that can be seen at the Archaeology Department of the Drents Museum in Assen, Netherlands. The Yde Girl is perhaps the second most popular bog body after the Tollund Man and definitely the most famous that hails from the Netherlands.
The Yde Girl was first discovered in a peat bog in the village of Yde, Netherlands in 1897.
Two peat cutters were working that day when the discovery was made. Once discovering the body, the two peat cutters fled the scene but came back to the same spot later in the day and somewhat covered the body.
News got around town of the discovery and villagers were curious about the body. The body was left there for two weeks before being turned over to the local authorities. Unfortunately, peat tools damaged the body as did locals who took her teeth and hair. Being exposed to the air for two weeks and poor conditions further damaged the body of the Yde Girl.
The remains were collected and brought to the Drents Museum days later. It was discovered that the Yde Girl, like the Tollund Man had a noose around her neck. She also had a stab wound near her collar bone. Evidence suggests that she was either tortured or a victim of sacrifice.
Carbon-14 tests have shown that the Yde Girl was around the age of 16 when she was murdered and died sometime between the years of 54 BC and 128 AD.
Today, only the head, torso, right hand, and feet survived.
In 1992, CT scans from her corpse were taken by a professor from Manchester University. The CT scan positively identified her age at 16 and showed that she had curvature of the spine.
Also in 1992, a facial reconstruction of her head was made by Richard Neave who used plastic surgery and pathology techniques to reconstruct her appearance. This facial reconstruction of the Yde Girl is currently on display at the Drents Museum in Assen along with her body.
Conclusion
Assen can make for a great day trip from Groningen or even Amsterdam. We stopped in Assen on our way to Groningen from Fort Bourtange. Visitors can see most of Assen in a single day. It is recommended to visit the Drents Museum in Assen, walk around the down town area, and catch a motorcycle race depending on the season. Assen is a cute town that has a lot of Dutch charm, there were plenty of restaurants and bars in Assen. There is something for everyone here!
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