10,000 years of living with water
The permanent exhibition Leven met water tells how people have struggled with water for 10,000 years, from prehistory to the drainage of the Noordoostpolder in 1942. Schokland has the longest history of human settlement in the Netherlands. Highlights include the footprints, a drowning victim’s identification token, a high-water cannon, a Lancaster propeller, a marker from the 1916 flood, a cave lion’s lower jaw and a wooden map of the Zuiderzee.
Rocks from Scandinavia
The museum’s largest collection is geological: thousands of glacial erratics from the northern Netherlands, rocks from Scandinavia, limestone fossils and minerals. Volunteers collected samples from solid rock in Scandinavia over many years. It is the Netherlands’ largest museum study collection of Scandinavian rocks. Amateur geologists Pieter van der Lijn and Bernhard Boelens bequeathed their collections to the municipality of Noordoostpolder in the 1960s.
Levende natuur
The temporary exhibition Levende natuur runs from 6 July 2026 until October 2026. It covers water, soil, ecology, nature development and the protection of the island’s archaeological remains. Visitors can also walk or cycle around the former island.