A bit further on from the farmworker’s cottage at Burg Verhildersum there was a museum of old agricultural equipment housed in a barn.

I love places like this.

Farm implements:-

Haywain and buggy:-

Threshing Machine?

Hay Separator?

On the upper level there was a sleigh. Useful in cold Dutch winters no doubt:-

After visiting the ‘big house‘ we went for a walk around the surrounding farmland and decided to visit the farm worker’s house which we could see in the distance. We’ve been to loads of stately homes in the UK but I don’t ever recall any of them also having a farm worker’s house that you could look inside. Most probably the small estate houses in the UK have been modernised and rented out to holidaymakers.

This photo of the outside of the worker’s cottage is copied from the Burg’s website.

Cottage interior:-

It would have been a lovely living space. Still is, but no-one actually does live in it now.

The rectangular box in front of the chair in the photo below is lined with metal and you put hot coals in it and put your feet on it with a blanket or long dress draped over it to keep your feet and legs nice and warm.

The wee house is surrounded by farmland and of course you are never far from a canal in The Netherlands over one of which this bridge crosses:-

The upper level of Burg Verhildersum was where the young children of the house must have spent most of their time.

Doll:-

Doll’s House:-

Toy castle + skates:-

More toys:-

Curiously there was a laundry room at the further end of the level, fenced off from the rest, no doubt to stop the children wandering into it. The screen you can see was playing a video of how the laundry would have been done back in the day:-

Stacked pots in basement of Burg Verhildersum:-

Storage:-

Hole in basement wall. The hole led through to an area which seemed to be filled with birds judging by the birdsong we could hear:-

A reasonably wide but steep wooden staircase led to the upper story of Burg Verhildersum. This child’s bed was near to where the stairs emerged:-

This suitcase and pram were close to the child’s bed:-

In my previous post about the interior of the burg I forgot to include this bird cage sitting atop a door frame:-

Kitchen:-

Dresser and box bed. The box bed would have been for a servant:-

Contrast that with this elaborate bed for the owners whose bedroom has wooden ceilings, plaster must have been used for the areas that would be seen by visitors. I think that the shutters on the wall above the bed are there just so that you can see what an earlier wall decoration looked like:-

The interior of Burg Verhildersum isn’t unlike a British country house except a bit more cramped.

Reception room:-

Model of burg:-

Dining room:-

Dining Room ceiling:-

Sitting room:-

The floor was strewn with toys to represent how it might have looked when the family was living there:-

Possibly a ladies sewing room:-

Burg Verhildersum, Leens, Groningen Province, Netherlands is a kind of Dutch equivalent of the English Country House.

From approach path:-

Entrance:-

The Burg is surrounded by a moat. In many ways it reminded me of Oxburgh Hall in Norfolk which we had visited a few days before.

Moat and cafe from bridge to entrance:-

View to side. Note topiary:-

Further round moat going anti-clockwise:-

Gardens and topiary to rear:-

View of rear of the Burg:-

Reverse side view:-

Moat to left side of entrance:-