The Passchendaele Museum in Zonnebeke will open its doors again from 1 February after the annual closing period. New this year is the temporary exhibition 'Here dead we lie' by the University of Kent and the exhibition around a unique loan.

Temporary photography exhibition in combination with poetry and objects



In cooperation with the University of Kent, the museum will exhibit photographs by amateur photographer and battlefield guide Mark Allen from 1 February to 15 December. In recent years, he has recorded numerous cemeteries and memorials on his phone. The photos in this exhibition were taken on the former battlefields around Ypres. The exhibition ‘Here Dead We Lie’ combines the images with poetry and museum objects with 'the past lives in our present' as a leitmotiv.

Exhibition around life-saving bag



In November 2021, the Dutch couple Denise and Bert Rouwenhorst donated a bag filled with a notebook, a map, eating utensils ... on loan to the museum. The bag belonged to Denise's grandfather William Henry Cousins. On 15 July 1917, he carried the bag on his back while being surprised by a German bombardment. William was severely wounded. The holes in his bag and belongings show that he owes his life to this bag.

Even more focus on the experience from 2023 onwards

The experience of the visitor is central to the Passchendaele Museum. From next year onwards, the museum wants to focus even more on this by converting the cinema hall into a new immersive space. Until 16 November 2022, visitors can still watch the film that gives a 10-minute overview of the Battle of Passchendaele. At the same time as the film, viewers can follow the Allies' progress on a scale model of the 1914 landscape. The new hall will immerse visitors even more in the 1917 story.

More info: www.passchendaele.be