You can’t get any
closer to Spinoza
During the last years of his life, Benedictus de Spinoza lived and worked in the attic room of – what is now called – Domus Spinoza. Here Spinoza completed his magnum opus the Ethics (Ethica) in 1675. He died here on February 21st, 1677. Departing from the Domus, an impressive funeral procession brought him to his final resting place. Domus Spinoza has a beautiful collection of translations of Spinoza’s works and a large collection of books about Spinoza in various languages.
The building
The building at Paviljoensgracht 72-74 in The Hague was commissioned by Jan van Goyen. Van Goyen, a famous 17th-century Dutch landscape painter, owned several properties in this neighborhood. Van Goyen himself lived around the corner on the Dunne Bierkade. Today, the Paviljoensgracht sits in the Hague’s ‘Old City Centre’.
In 1669, Jacob van der Spyck bought the property. His son, the decorative painter Hendrick van der Spyck, rented the house from his father. He lived in the building and had his studio in it. In 1671, Van der Spyck became Spinoza’s landlord.
Collection
The library of the Domus contains more than 20 translations of Spinoza’s books. Domus also has more than 1500 books in various languages about Spinoza.
Guided tours
A team of volunteers receives visitors every Friday afternoon and by appointment. Depending on the background of the visitor, the background of the hostess or host and other guests, the visit will be filled in conversation, in experiencing or in reading. You can’t get any closer to Spinoza!