“The knowledge that is collected, managed and managed in a museum manner for this purpose, preserves the historic Ramtorenschip Buffel and its collection for Hellevoetsluis and the Netherlands, on the basis of a collection with associated and presented.”

This collection and knowledge is primarily used to offer the historic naval experience to a broad audience in an educationally responsible manner. The work necessary for this is currently carried out mainly by volunteers and partly consists of: opening the Ramtorenschip Buffel to the public as valuable maritime cultural heritage within the historic fortress of Hellevoetsluis; to open the Ramtorenschip Buffel to excursions and visiting public in the broadest sense of the word; to make the Ramtorenschip Buffel and its collection available for study and research into maritime heritage.

The history of the “Buffalo” is divided into two naval periods, namely:

• 1868 – 1896; Warship (2nd class) for the Dutch coastal defense.
• 1896 – 1974; Training and accommodation ship (1896 – 1920 in Hellevoetsluis).
• 1974 – present; Museum ship (2013 – present in Hellevoetsluis).

An important part of history (1896 – 1920) is part of the collection and is made visible through objects owned by the Ramtorenschip Buffel foundation and objects and documents on loan. For this purpose, agreements are concluded with other museums (including Maritime Museum Rotterdam, City Museum Hellevoetsluis and private collectors).

The Ramtorenschip Buffel Foundation strives for the status of a registered museum that preserves the history of the Buffalo on the basis of a collection and associated knowledge, which is collected, managed, preserved and presented in a museum manner.

The Ramtorenschip Buffel Foundation collects objects that fall within this objective. Objects must have a relationship with the history of historic naval training ships in the Netherlands. The history of training ships in the Netherlands took place between 1880 and 1974. This history is therefore behind us. In contrast to other maritime museums, the Buffel will therefore be able to add limited objects that are directly related to its period as a training ship to the collection area in the future.

This collection and knowledge is primarily used to offer an authentic maritime historical experience to a broad audience in an educationally responsible manner. The work is mainly carried out by volunteers. Where desirable and financially possible, non-volunteers (professionals) are deployed.

The activities of the Ramtorenschip Buffel Foundation arise from this mission. Almost all objects are collected with the aim of using them thematically according to their functional authenticity. In other words, all objects are managed for the purpose of presenting them in the museum ship. Given the spatial limitations within and on the ship, exhibitions and presentations are also provided in collaboration with other museum organizations. O.a. with the City Museum Hellevoetsluis, the Vestingeiland Holland Foundation, the Development & Exploitation Museum Quarter Hellevoetsluis Foundation and the Historyland Foundation in Hellevoetsluis.

The Ramtorenschip Buffel Foundation occupies an important position compared to comparable museums and tourist organizations in the Netherlands. The way in which the Ramtorenschip Buffel Foundation presents itself is unique in our country. The ship is the oldest surviving example of the transition from wooden to iron-built steam vessels within the Dutch navy. This is the highest rated after the Ramtorenschip Scorpion in Den Helder. Moreover, the museum ship is historically the most complete Ram Tower ship, both in terms of exterior and interior. Only three of this type of ram tower ships from this construction period have been preserved worldwide. (Buffalo, Scorpio and Huascar in Peru).
A brief analysis of the collection policy at the Ramtorenschip Buffel foundation shows a number of areas of tension:

Tension with authenticity compared to non-floating museums, regarding accuracy in reconstructions and restorations in relation to the original ship design.
Tension with the residents’ interests of the fortress, where the appearance of the ship dominates and functional authenticity must be guaranteed (example; plans for a deck roof).
Tension with contemporary laws and regulations versus the authentic state of the museum ship and the objects (example; historical weapons).

The Ramtorenschip Buffel Foundation has some overlap in its collection area with other museums. Parts of the collections can also be found in the Marine Museum in den Helder, the Maritime Museum in Rotterdam and to a lesser extent at the Maritime Museum in Amsterdam and the National Military Museum in Soesterberg. In addition, there is limited overlap in the collection area when it comes to more local historical objects and information that De Buffel has in its collection. We find such collections, for example, in the Hellevoetsluis City Museum.