Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: Archtektur

New Norcia was founded in 1847 by Spanish Benedictine monks. Originally established as an Aboriginal Mission, the monks built a village comprising a church, flour mills, schools, hostel, apiary, blacksmiths shop, olive shed and olive groves surrounding the monastery. The settlement had/has many purposes; a mission, a monastery and a provider of education. The monastery - where the monks live, work and pray - is the heart of New Norcia. Beside the religious buildings New Norcia offers a museum and art gallery, which shows an array of artefacts that trace New Norcia’s time as an Aboriginal mission, a centre of extensive farming and as a place of education and culture. Nowadays the town is an important cultural heritage site. Twenty seven of its buildings are classified by the National Trust and the town as a whole is registered on the National Estate. It continues to be home to a community of Benedictine monks, who own and operate this unique settlement.

With less than 900 inhabitants and approx. 350 houses, Wilsum still is a city. It was (probably) already granted city rights by the bishop of Utrecht in 1321. When you visit Wilsum nowadays, you cannot imagine that you are in a city. It looks more like a peaceful country village, nicely situated on the banks of the river IJssel. The only building that reminds you of a town is the imposing Sint-Lambertuskerk (Saint Lambert Church), one of the oldest churches in the province of Overijssel. The church is dating back to the year of 1050, but nothing is known about the original structure. The tower with the nave is the oldest part: they are Romanesque in design and probably date from the 11th century. The church has undergone several changes in its almost 1.000 years of existence. After the Reformation, the church was stripped of its Roman Catholic characteristics. Original there were five Romanesque windows on the north and south sides of the nave, while the east side and the choir were closed. The present Gothic choir was built in the 14th century, against the then lower nave of the church. Major changes were made to the nave in the 15th century. The side walls were raised and vaulted, while the Romanesque windows were replaced by pointed arch windows. During a restoration in 1902, neo-Gothic influences gave the church its current character. During the last restoration of the Sint-Lambertuskerk in 1982 a number of wall paintings - hundreds of years old - were discovered.

Sint Nicolaaskerk (St. Nicholas Church) is an old church whose Romanesque tower dates from 1220. The rest of the church was built in Gothic style against the existing tower around 1400, partly with material - mostly tuff - from a previous smaller church. The church was founded by the Lords of Buckhorst who owned a castle in this area. This castle was demolished in 1841, but the church still contains, among other things, Buckhorst pews and a family tomb. The church was maintained by the descendants of the Buckhorst family until 1838. Over the centuries, the church fell into disrepair. That is why work began on restoring the exterior of the church in 1991. Services are still held in the Sint Nicolaaskerk by the Reformed Congregation Zalk en Veecaten .

Firdgum is a small village on a terp (a man made mound), created in the Middle Ages. The little village has about 30 houses and 70 inhabitants. Until 1794 there was a 13th century Reformed church, dedicated to St. Nicolas. The church was demolished in 1794 as it was too dilapidated and dangerous to hold services in. The tower made of bricks - which still contains a bell from 1471 - has remained and still rises like a 19 meter high landmark in the flat landscape. The three-storey gabled tower was restored in 1922 and a Lombard band was added. In 1986 the tower was restored again. The church tower is a national heritage monument of the Netherlands.

There has been a chapel - first mentioned in 1245 - at this location on the island of Vlieland, which was dedicated to Saint Nicholas. It became a parish church in the late Middle Ages. Later, it was elevated to a parish church. As the village of West-Vlieland gradually became depopulated (see: www.ipernity.com/doc/294067/50819386) and the inhabitants moved to Oost-Vlieland, the need arose for a larger building. After the Reformation the chapel was replaced by the present building, using bricks from the demolished chapel. The Nicolaaskerk (Nicholas Church) was built in 1605 as an east-west oriented simple hall church. At that point it was one of the first church buildings in the Netherlands built voor Protestant services. In 1647 the church was extended in the direction of the church square and acquired its current form. The interior of the Nicolaaskerk is famous for the whale jaws that were once used as tombstones, but were brought inside because of the acid rain. Many parts of the church are made of jute wood, like some pews, and a panel of the pulpit once was a door of a ship. The chandeliers were donated by the King of Sweden and Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter, one of the most skilled Dutch admirals in history. (Unfortunately, due to the corona measures, it was not possible for me to visit the interior of the church. We could only catch a glimpse of it from behind a locked glass door.) The last restoration of the - nowadays - only church on Vlieland was in 1997. For a time it was known as Hervormde Kerk , but is now named by its original name, Nicolaaskerk . In addition to services, it serves also as a venue for concerts.

Het Oude Raadhuis (The Old Town Hall) was built in 1855 to replace a building from 1598. The town hall was built in neo-classical style. Two gable stones still remind one of the old town hall: one with the year 1598 and one with Vlieland's coat of arms on it. The town hall has a hip-roof with chimneys at the corners. On the roof is a bell tower, on which a weather vane in the shape of a ship is placed. The pillars in front of the door bear the two former coats of arms of Oost- and West-Vlieland. The building was registered as a national monument in 1967. In 2001 Het Oude Raadhuis was sold to the Vereniging Hendrick de Keyser (an association aiming to be the guardian of the architectural heritage of The Netherlands by acquiring, conserving, restoring and renting out historic properties). This association had Het Oude Raadhuis restored in 2005. Nowadays the building is used as a wedding venue.

The history of Het Armhuis dates back to 1632. In that year it was decided that a kind of home for former sailors should be created. Thanks to a generous donation from the clergyman Abraham Ursinius, the deaconry was able to take on this task. For centuries the house provided shelter to old (seafaring) people, the needy and later also to orphans. Until 1950 it functioned as an Armhuis . After a thorough restoration in 1997, the building was used as a restaurant and gallery (in the meantime the restaurant will be closed on 1 June 2021). Het Armhuis is also an official wedding location on Vlieland.