There’s more to the respected Dutch city than canals, cannabis and scantily clad ladies.

Ask a friend to make a list of Europe’s leading cities for culture and art and it’s likely Amsterdam will not be on it. Our views of Amsterdam have been shaped by its centuries as a bustling port, commercial rivalry with England and the enduring reputation of its red-light district. Add to that a comparatively liberal approach to marijuana use, and the city’s reputation as a place of transgression is hard to shake off.

Amsterdam is a bustling commercial port, it’s true, but if you stop and think, that’s always been a stimulus for cultural dynamism. Venice, Barcelona and New York were, and still are, major ports, whose commercial wealth and cosmopolitanism created the conditions for experimentation and innovation in the arts at different times.

Amsterdam’s Canal Ring

Amsterdam was founded in the 12th century when fisherman built a bridge across the Ij waterway. For much of the Middle Ages it was ruled by the Prince-Bishop of Utrecht, little interested in trade and commerce. Contact with the Hanseatic merchants of the Baltic in the 14th century changed...