The research centre houses two large collections which preserve the heritage and history of the villages now belonging to the community of Zonnebeke.
The documentation centre of the Passchendaele Museum covers a range of First World War reference books and archives, particularly about the Third Battle of Ypres (1917).
The second collection contains the library and archives of the Zonnebeke Heemvrienden dedicated on local customs and folklore. It holds both general and periodical works on local history.
Apart from our extensive library, the collection contains photographs and maps, including trench maps and aerial photos from our own and external archives. The collection focuses on Zonnebeke and its sub-municipalities. The collection of the Zonnebeekse Heemvrienden and the digital inventory lists of photographs and maps as well as aerial photographs in GIS can only be consulted in the research centre. An overview of the photographs and maps in the museum collection can be consulted via the online collection catalogue. The catalogue is not yet complete and will be replenished.
The Passchendaele Museum places a strong emphasis on Open Data and on making heritage collections freely accessible. Through Wikimedia Commons, the museum publishes a growing number of images of historical objects in the public domain. By making these images openly available, they can be reused worldwide by researchers, students, teachers and heritage enthusiasts. In this way, the images can be used for historical research or as illustrations in Wikipedia articles.
Get in touch
Would you like to consult archival material? Are you interested in a book from the library? Please make an appointment in advance with the research centre.
Ieperstraat 1
B-8980 Zonnebeke
T 051 77 04 41
kenniscentrum@zonnebeke.be