Author Guidelines

Language submitted texts
Native English speakers write in English; their articles will be edited by a native speaker. Dutch authors write in Dutch; their articles shall be translated after editing. If authors want to submit an article in German, which is to be translated into English as well, please contact the editor. Most of the guidelines below are valid for all three languages.

Short outline
Authors are requested to send a short outline of the intended article to the editorial board first (bulletin@rijksmuseum.nl). This should be no more than 300 words long and contain the answers to the following questions:

• What is the central question of the article?
• How does the author propose to answer it?
• What sources are being used?
• To what conclusion(s) does the author come?
• What does the article add to the area of research and to the knowledge of the Rijksmuseum’s collection in particular?

Full-length article
Once the editors have extended an invitation to you to write the intended article, please observe our word count restriction of 6,000 words including notes. Articles that exceed this word count cannot be considered for publication. Notes are primarily to be used for referencing sources. The addition of appendices needs to be discussed with the editor. The article may be accompanied by approximately twenty images.

Short Notice
Short Notices should be no more than 2,000 words long including notes, with six images.

Abstract and biography
Please include an abstract and a short biography when submitting your article. The abstract should be between 150 and 200 words in length (full-length articles only). Biographies must describe your current engagements only and should span two sentences (about 30 words).

For detailed copy instructions, please read the full Instructions for Authors and English Style Guide.