All Around Amsterdam

Yesterday we went to the Hermitage (an extension of the St Petersburg museum) to see a collection of Art Nouveau pieces from the Tzars.
Dance of the scarves

Winter panel from the four seasons tapestries.

We also spent quite a bit of time in the Jewish Museum nearby.

The houses on the canals are built on pilings sunk into the mud. The dark house in the middle of this picture with the red shutter on the top floor looked to be listing. Today we were at the Anne Frank House and a wonderful exhibit at the Nieuwe Kerk called the hidden Afghanistan.
In the first century the northern part of Afghanistan was a major crossroads for nomads from China and Mongolia and Greeks. The art was an amalgam of East and West.
What was recovered from archaeological sites prior to the Soviet invasion has been preserved and is fantastic. This collection came first to France in 12/06 and is now in the Netherlands. One impressive find was a burial mound of a man with a horse sacrificed next to him surrounded by 5 women aged 20-30. All were buried dressed in all their gold. The gold jewelry was amazing. Such things as gold and turquoise hearts set in gold. Hearts? I never thought of heart shapes being 2,000 years old. One of the women had had a golden bangle crown and another had golden sandals. I think in the tradition of India they died with their spouse.