It may even make the bookcase look more authentic to the visitor The experience will change, but that may not be a bad thing.The public feels that the bookcase is magical, and it feeds their imagination about life in the hiding place, so it should never be removed.You would not expect to touch Rembrandt’s Night Watch either.Even so, the majority, including many students, indicated that they would advise putting the bookcase (partially) behind glass. Showing the bookcase behind glass might change the experience. For many visitors, touching the original bookcase adds to the visit.

The survey yielded different opinions and reasons.

The experience would not change if the original were shown behind glass.

It would be all right to replace the original with a replica.

Touching the original bookcase adds to the visit.

The bookcase is an inextricable part of the room.

We asked them to respond to the following statements during their visit: We also involved visitors and students from the Netherlands and abroad. Public surveyĪfter the expert meeting, we invited colleagues from other museums, restorers, and designers to add to the discussion. Several curators, a furniture restorer, interior experts, a museology professor, and a number of museum directors attended the meeting and discussed the future of the bookcase. In June 2013, we called an expert meeting. Together with various experts, we looked into a type of protection that would not affect the visitor experience upon entering the Secret Annex. In 2013, we researched how best to protect the bookcase from further deterioration, keeping in mind that immersion is an important aspect of the museum and that we want to keep it that way. The ‘do not touch’ sign no longer sufficed. All this to prevent further deterioration.Īs the years went by, we learned from the condition reports and from observation that the proper protection of the bookcase required more drastic measures. The bookcase was cleaned and restored when necessary. Every year, pictures were taken of all sides of the bookcase. Since 2008, its condition was closely monitored. The expertise of external restorers was called in more than once. Over the years, the bookcase was cleaned on a regular basis, and minor repair work was done. As a result, the bookcase is covered with scratches and surface dirt. Others hold on to the bookcase to step onto the high entrance to the Secret Annex, and one or two may pull the handle to see if they can still move the bookcase. Some touch the bookcase or knock on the wood.

Observations on site and from CCTV cameras show visitors interfering with the bookcase. The condition of the bookcase was deteriorating with the growing number of visitors.

Even so, it has sustained damage over the past fifty years. Most visitors respect the authenticity of the bookcase. They try to imagine what it must have been like to be locked in for two years, always living in fear, and closed off from the outside world.Īuthenticity and immersion are important qualities of the Anne Frank House. To many people, visiting the Anne Frank House is an emotional experience. Visitors enter the Secret Annex through the narrow opening past the moveable bookcase.

Two bookshelves