Shadow

 A lantern at a canalhouse in Amsterdam. Linking to "Shadow Shot Sunday"

Reflections

Reflections of the trees in the windows the "Netherlands Institute of War Documentation" (NIOD) in a monumental canal building in Amsterdam.

The institute was founded on May 8 1945 to write the history of the the Second World War in the Netherlands and in the former Dutch Indies through independent research.

Linking to "Weekend Reflections"

Some Amsterdam views

A flower selling point in Amsterdam, close to the Rembrandt square that's why the name is Rembrandt flowers.

Two unusual canal houses.

The Kerkstraat (Churchstreet)

The top of this canal house has a golden glittering decoration on top, but that didn't came forward in the photo helas.

Canalhouses

To get heavy items into a canalhouse in Amsterdam has to be done this way. The steps are to small to lift it up big things.

Pothouse

This "pithouse" is a small extension or construction located in front or next to an urban house. It is an deepened space partly above the ground, They were already known in the Middle Ages, when it like the main building, was pulled out of wood.

Many canalhouses in Amsterdam have such an extension as is the case here.

Originally, the name was Puthouse because the buildings were built over a rainwater collection pit. Water could be drained from the basement of the house inside the the wellhouse. Later the spaces are often enlarged and changed from destination. For example as house workshops, storage rooms, or as kitchen pothouses with a toilet. In the Netherlands there are dozens of pothouses which are valued as monuments. Linking to "Our World Tuesday"

Living in a warehouse

Amsterdam has many warehouses along the canals dating from the 17th centrury when Amsterdam used to be a major trading center. The former warehouses are not in use anymore and most of them are converted into apartments. They are high brick built structures often on narrow and deep plots. The facades end in a top and feature large shutters close openings. In the top is a hoist beam mounted.

Canal house

One of the nicest museums I like to visit it this "Museum of Bags and Purces" , or the "Tassenmuseum" as we call it in dutch, in Amsterdam. It is housed in a beautiful canalhouse from 1666.

This exhibition special attracted my attentention.

In the basement  this futuristic bag was placed in the window.

The inside looks beautiful a lounge where you can have a cosy seat after walking through the museum.

A little corridor.

The tearoom.

And a glass window in the staircase.

The residents who lived here until it became a museum in 2007.

Another time I'll show you some purses.

Linking to "Our World Tuesday"

Amsterdam canal houses

The Old Lutheran Church at the Singel in Amsterdam dating from 1633. With renovations of the canal side here all the trees have been removed and you have now an unusual view at all the houses.

Some houses are leaning aside.

Others have beautiful decorations on top.

This one suffers some serious prolapse.

They are all very old like this one from 1652.

Shadow

The shadow of an old lantern at a canal house in Amsterdam, makes it two.

Linking to "Shadow Shot Sunday 2"

Knock, knock

No door bell here but an elegant door knocker as in past times without electricity.

Hope the habitants of this canal house in Amsterdam can hear the visitor.

Linking to "Signs, signs"

Amsterdam gables.

This is one of the oldest parts of Amsterdam, the Gelderse kade (quay), with some good examples of the typical canal houses, The red one on the left has a so called "Stepped gable". The top of the stepped gable narrows gradually upwards.

 Between 1600 and 1665 the wooden gables were rapidly replaced by stepped gables of brick. In the 17th century,  the cityscape was practically defined by stepped gables. Now there are only a hundred original gagbles left.

The house next to it has a so called "Clock gable". The top of the gable is of brick in the shape of a clock with decoration of sandstone on the edges ending in lugs. These gables date from the period 1660 to 1790.  

All old Amsterdam houses have a "lifting beam" on top. With a rope and a block attached to it you can hoist furnitures to the windows and get them in the house, because the stairs are to narrow to transport big furnitures up- and downstairs.

Linking to "Our World Tuesday"

Canal House

The Photography Museum "Huis Marseille" in Amsterdam is housed in two connected beautiful old canal houses. Each time I visit I am impressed by the ambiance.

Watch the ceiling in the entrance hall.

And look at the frieze above steps and the marble floor.

Have a look "here" for more about the house.

Canal House

It is always worth looking up. I hadn't noticed this tower at a canal house at the Prinsengracht in Amsterdam before.

The building dates from 1890 by architect Ed. Cuypers and the facade is built in neo-renaissance style. It used to house the Amsterdam Milking Device.

The facade is richly decorated with a frieze.

Here a closer look, the image happens to be a milk bacchanal.

The facade however is the only thing that has left of the original building, behind this a modern office building has raised.

Spring sunshine (or not)

With every day sunshine at the moment Amsterdam looks wonderful for making photos.

Because of the bright sunshine I noticed now details at the facades of the old canal houses which I hadn't seen before or were hidden behind the leaves of the trees in summer.

Look at the two dolphines on top and the gable of a fisherman.

We had a total solar eclips in North-West Europe yesterday. Everybody was excited to watch it in the morning with special glasses, but when you need the sun there is no sun! It was a cloudy day without sunshine here and we were all very disappointed not to see anything of eclips. Some people saw for 8 seconds the clouds moving away and had a photo of a little sickle shape. The only thing we noticed was a bit darker day light but that looked like it was going to rain, which we expierence here very often.

Skywatch

A brand new decoration on top of a canalhouse in Amsterdam. I can't find any information about it but I once have read the image has to do something with the residents.

Linking to Skywatch Friday

This is the house in total.

Almshouse van Brienen

A plaque at this building commemorates "Arnout Jan van Brienen, Heer van de Groote Lindt" and his wife "Sophia Maria van Wassenaer" who founded a almshouse for 40 poor homeless eldery people in 1804 at the Prinsengracht (canal)  in Amsterdam. He was a very rich man and used his money at least to help the poor. Above the porch is an arm with two putto (a chubby male child) with a catholic cross). 

Above the porch is a a nice little tower. 

In september last year I visited the home of Van Brienen at Open Monuments day,  look here.
Want to read more about this almshouse look here.

Friday Fences

A nice decorated iron fence in front of a canal house in Amsterdam. You can see that every house has a different fence.

And here the complete entrance.

See for more Friday Fences here

Canal house

The visit at the "House Van Brienen" of yesterdays post I will continue today to show you the other parts. To get in was a challenge at the crowded Open Monuments Day. Several canal houses had opened their doors to have a look inside, but the amount of people had to be controlled, so long lines of people were waiting outside. We were lucky with this one, no long queue so we climbed the stairs to the entrance.

The hallway had a marble floor. The rooms to the right you couldn't enter just have a peek inside.

Hubby sccollections had made photos of the rooms so you can watch there.

In the hall was a beautiful mirror.

The patio.

The room I showed you yesterday had big windows with a view at the garden.

The garden with a nice pavillion.

The sink in the garden with a pump. The taps must be of a recent time.

The kitchen in the basement.

With a marble kitchen sink.

And the servants room.

You can look here to see more pictures.