Louis Couperus Museum

Roots

Couperus knew the neighborhood better than anyone. As a schoolboy, he lived at Nassauplein 4, and he wrote his first novel in a house that his father had built at Surinamestraat 20. The museum is located opposite Surinamestraat, where Couperus’ bronze bust has stood since 1963. The house at Javastraat 17 was the studio of another prominent local, Albert Vogel, who fought for greater recognition of Couperus’ work after the Second World War until his death.

Personal belongings

Objects on display at the exhibition include some of Couperus’ personal belongings, such as his desk and a portrait of his father. The objects and all of Couperus’ manuscripts are property of the Literatuurmuseum (Dutch Museum of Literature) in The Hague. The collection includes a life-like plastic effigy of Couperus. The figure is clothed in a 19th-century costume that the novelist actually wore and was donated by a men’s fashion store in The Hague.