Johanna Borskibrug: Bridge 41 and the Woman Who Saved the Dutch State Twice
Piet Kramer’s Most Distinctive Vijzelstraat Bridge, at the Keizersgracht, Facing the Building She Helped Create There is a bridge in Amsterdam that carries a Roman joke. The four natural stone columns at the corners of Bridge 41 bear the inscription “SPQA,” a wry adaptation of the Roman “SPQR,” Senatus Populusque Romanus, the Senate and People…
Bridge 40: The Southern Face and the Final Word in Stone
An Arch Bridge on the Southern Quay of the Keizersgracht, Spanning the Reguliersgracht There is a particular satisfaction in writing about Bridge 40 after Bridges 38 and 39. Together the three bridges form one of the most complete architectural compositions in the Amsterdam canal belt, and Bridge 40 is the element that closes the composition.…
Bridge 39: The Northern Face of Amsterdam’s Most Famous Canal Junction
A 20th-Century Arch on the Northern Quay of the Keizersgracht, Spanning the Reguliersgracht There is a word in Dutch architectural heritage documentation that requires careful handling: “naadloos,” meaning seamless. The Dutch Wikipedia article on Bridge 38 uses it to describe the relationship between Bridges 38, 39, and 40 at the Keizersgracht/Reguliersgracht junction: their quay walls…
Bridge 38: The Unnamed Arch at the Heart of Amsterdam’s Most Photographed Canal Junction
An 18th-Century Stone Bridge Where the Reguliersgracht Meets the Keizersgracht, and the Memory of a Mayor Who Built and Profited From the Canals He Ordered Dug Bridge 38 carries no official name and, since July 2016, carries no informal one either. It sits precisely at the point where the Reguliersgracht crosses the Keizersgracht, the junction…
Bridge 37: The Unnamed Tram Crossing That Was Once Amsterdam’s Water Gauge
Discover Bridge 37 (Brug Zevenendertig) in Amsterdam. Located where the Herengracht meets the Amstel, this historic bridge offers iconic views near the Blauwbrug.
De Lucas Jansz. Sinckbrug: Bridge 36 and the Surveyor Who Drew Amsterdam Into Existence
The Last Bridge Over the Keizersgracht, at the Western Bank of the Amstel There are bridges in Amsterdam that mark endings. Bridge 36, the Lucas Jansz. Sinckbrug, marks one of the most significant: it is the final crossing of the Keizersgracht, the point where Amsterdam’s widest inner canal finishes its long arc from the Brouwersgracht…
De Hendrick Jacobsz. Staetsbrug: Bridge 35 and the City Carpenter Who Built Amsterdam’s Canals
The Last Bridge Over the Herengracht, at the Western Bank of the Amstel Bridge 35 and Bridge 36 are neighbours in the most precise sense: they stand side by side on the western quay of the Amstel, separated by barely fifty metres of cobbled waterfront, each spanning the mouth of one of Amsterdam’s two great…
Bridge 34: The Unnamed Crossing at the Golden Bend’s Edge
Discover the history of Bridge 34 (Brug Vierendertig) in Amsterdam. Located on the Utrechtsestraat, this bridge is a key transit point for Tram 4 over the Herengracht.
Spijkenisser Eurobruggen | The Bridges of Europe
Amsterdam has hundreds of historic bridges but Spijkenisse just outside Rotterdam has a unique set of bridges worth a day trip! The bridges on the back of the euro banknotes are not real European bridges, but abstractions. Forms from European cultural history were chosen, including Gothic and Rococo. “They chose bridges, because they stand for…
Maps and locations of bridges in Amsterdam
Want to see where all the bridges are in relation to each other? Well here is a handy map of the bridges that I have already documented or posted about. (mostly up to date)
Kaasmarktsluis: Bridge 32 and the Cheese Market That Refused to Be Forgotten
The Bridge of 15 bridges (Brug van 15 bruggen). This viewpoint is named the 15 bridges because standing on the odd-numbered side with your back to Thorbeckeplein you can see 6 arched bridges across the Reguliersgracht. Look down Herengracht to the left and you see another 6 bridges. Furthermore, two more bridges are visible to…
De Tante Saarbrug: Bridge 31 and the Flower Seller Who Became a Monument
An 18th-Century Arch Bridge at the Most Photographed Canal Junction in Amsterdam There is a spot in Amsterdam where, if you stand in the right place, you can count sixteen bridges in a single glance. The bridge you are standing on when you do so is Bridge 31, the Tante Saarbrug. It is not the…
De Isa van Eeghenbrug: Bridge 30 and the Queen of Amsterdam Studies
This bridge is currently undergoing renovations, so here are a couple of pictures to give you an idea of what it usually looks like. Bridge number 30 (De Isa van Eeghenbrug), also known as brug nummer Dertig, is another impressive design created by Piet Kramer. Interestingly, this bridge was officially named in 2016 and is…
De Koningssluis: Bridge 29 and the King Who Named a Canal He Never Visited
Bridge number 29 (De Koningssluis) brug nummer negenentwintig (King’s Lock) Piet Kramer adapted designs for this bridge when it was rebuilt on old foundations in the 1920’s and they are known as “from the desk of”. Kramer as we have seen before on Brug 23 designed in the style of the Amsterdam School with the…
Vier Heemskinderenbrug: Bridge 28 and the Medieval Legend at the Edge of the Golden Age City
The Four Sons of Aymon Bridge Bridge number 28 (Vier Heemskinderenbrug, also known as the Vier Heemskinderensluis) brug nummer achtentwintig. The Four Sons of Aymon Bridge.This bridge is named after the gable stone with the Vier Heemskinderen on the corner of the Herengracht and the Leidsegracht.The Four Sons of Aymon (De Vier Heemskinderen), sometimes also…