Valkhof Museum

Valkhof Museum Review

Forgiven, barely, for its aqua hue, boxy exterior "design"—which Emperor Charlemagne, whose castle remains border the premises, would have decidedly turned his nose up at—the Valkhof Museum is nevertheless a very important archaeological and modern art museum rolled into one. The bright, pleasant space (despite the questionable accordion-style stairway) features a truly fine exhibition of prehistoric, Roman, and medieval artifacts found (and still being found) in the very backyards of local residents. A veritable department store of antiquity balanced by a fast-forward selection of Expressionism and Pop Art designed to tease those reluctant to test both waters, the museum also features such showpieces as the oldest wine (no sampling) in all of Europe, in a glass bottle some 2,000 years old; a hoot of a drinking vessel in the shape of an owl-like creature with a coconut shell body and silver trim (belief was that if given poison, one could see it in the coconut); and the showstopper, an iron mask with silver and bronze, dating from AD 100 and found nearby in the river.