I studied Mediterranean archaeology, classical history and logic at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam. In 1996 I joined the ROB (now RCE) and worked as archaeological draftsman/cartographer. Now I’m holding the position of researcher spatial analysis at the landscape department and give guest lectures in GIS and Maritime Landscape. Phone: +31615220856
Een stadsgenese is een 3D-verbeelding van de relatie van een locatie met het natuurlijke systeem ... more Een stadsgenese is een 3D-verbeelding van de relatie van een locatie met het natuurlijke systeem van bodem, water en groen/ natuur en van de ingrepen van de mens in het natuurlijke systeem door de eeuwen heen. Genese betekent letterlijk ‘wording’ of ‘ontstaan’. Inzicht in het ontstaan biedt houvast om vanuit de identiteit van de plek te werken aan maatschappelijke opgaven zoals klimaatadaptatie en energietransitie.
Een stadsgenese kan op verschillende schaalniveaus worden uitgewerkt. In deze website worden 3 schaalniveaus onderscheiden: een stad/dorp, een gebied en een wijk. Voor het stadsniveau is recentelijk een boek gepresenteerd. De inhoud ervan staat ook op deze website onder ‘stad/dorp’. Daarnaast wordt ook uitgelegd hoe je zelf een genese kan maken.
Het landschap van West-Nederland is het resultaat van een eeuwenlange wisselwerking tussen mens e... more Het landschap van West-Nederland is het resultaat van een eeuwenlange wisselwerking tussen mens en natuur. Ook het gebied rond de Schie, tussen Delft, Schiedam en Rotterdam, is een oud landschap. Dat begon al ruim vóór onze jaartelling toen de eerste mensen zich in deze streek vestigden. In de vroege middeleeuwen was de Schie slechts een veenriviertje. Tussen 1000 en 1200 werden de woeste veengronden ontgonnen tot een agrarisch cultuurlandschap. Na deze grote ontginning diende de Schie als afwateringskanaal, maar ook als vaarverbinding tussen de opkomende steden. In de Gouden Eeuw werd het een trekvaartroute en een vaarweg voor de binnenvaart. Het omringende landschap veranderde al die eeuwen mee. Door de uitstekende bereikbaarheid van het waterrijke gebied kwamen de steden op. De concurrenten Schiedam, Delft en Rotterdam groeven kanalen om zichzelf de beste positie in het Hollandse handelsnetwerk te verschaffen. De steden begonnen aan een periode van ongekende groei. Stadsuitbreidingen schoven steeds verder over het oude cultuurlandschap heen. Agrarisch gebruik maakte plaats voor recreatie, cultuurgebieden werden ten slotte omgevormd tot ‘nieuwe’ natuur. De cirkel lijkt weer rond. De Atlas van de Schie vertelt met oude én nieuwe kaarten het verhaal hoe een kanaaltje in het nog praktisch onbevolkte Holland een vaarweg werd in het sterkst verstedelijkte deel van Nederland. Al 2500 jaar werkt en sleutelt men aan landschap en infrastructuur, en dat zal men blijven doen. Het is nooit af.
Erfgoedbalans 2009. Archeologie, monumenten en cultuurlandschap in Nederland, 2009
The Heritage Review 2009 describes the latest situation as regards archaeology, monuments and his... more The Heritage Review 2009 describes the latest situation as regards archaeology, monuments and historic buildings and the cultural landscape in the Netherlands.
- 2009a: M. de Boer, E. van As, H.J.P.M. van den Besselaar, E. Beukers, O. Brinkkemper, P.W.F. Brinkman, A. Haytsma, M.C. Kosian, R.C.G.M. Lauwerier, M.W. Schnitker, H.J.T. Weerts (eds.): Erfgoedbalans 2009. Archeologie, monumenten en cultuurlandschap in Nederland. Amersfoort: Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed.
Veldnamen waren de straatnamen van het platteland. Welke akker, elk stukje groenland of opvallend... more Veldnamen waren de straatnamen van het platteland. Welke akker, elk stukje groenland of opvallende plekjes had een eigen betekenisvolle naam. Zonder kaart of navigatiesysteem vonden dorpsbewoners feilloos de weg naar het Torenveen, de Meulenakkers of het Stoefgat. Veldnamen vormden een vanzelfsprekend onderdeel van hun leefomgeving. Ze waren onmisbaar voor de oriëntatie en handig in de communicatie. Dit rijk geïllustreerde boek bevat een verhelderende essays en boeiende interviews. Het opent de schatkist die het veldnamenbezit in al zijn rijkdom, variatie en betekenis vormt. 'Van Jeruzalem tot Ezelakker' vertelt over het landschap vanaf het moment dat het nog woest en ledig was en ontcijfert de geheimtaal die het al eeuwen in zich draagt.
Tussen de Haarlemmerpoort en Halfweg ligt een landschap dat weinigen echt kennen: de Brettenzone.... more Tussen de Haarlemmerpoort en Halfweg ligt een landschap dat weinigen echt kennen: de Brettenzone. Een afwisseling van oud en nieuw, agrarisch en industrieel landschap, van infrastructuur en natuur.
De Brettenzone komt voort uit het beroemde Algemeen Uitbreidingsplan van Amsterdam uit 1935. Dat voorzag in een groene zone tussen de Westelijke Tuinsteden en het havengebied.
Maar in de uitvoering was vooral aandacht voor woningbouw en havenuitbreiding. Ertussen bleef een versnipperd gebied over, een openluchtmuseum van half uitgevoerde plannen, een rijk maar onontdekt cultuurlandschap.
Tussen Haarlemmerpoort en Halfweg presenteert de geschiedenis van de Brettenzone in een reeks nieuw getekende kaarten met een heldere toelichting. Deze atlas laat zien hoe dit landschap zich ontwikkelde van veenmoeras tot middeleeuwse ontginning, van landgoederenzone tot stadsrand.
Met daarin de eerste trekvaart uit de Gouden Eeuw en de oudste spoorlijn van Nederland, maar ook de Westergasfabriek en Sugar City. Een stedelijk landschap waarin de natuur – voor het eerst sinds de vroege middeleeuwen – op veel plekken de overhand krijgt.
De Brettenzone zal de komende jaren door zijn ligging een sleutelrol spelen in de ontwikkeling van de Metropoolregio Amsterdam, als groene en blauwe as van de stad naar de kust. Deze atlas is daarom niet alleen van belang voor historisch geïnteresseerde lezers, maar ook voor architecten, landschapsontwerpers en stedenbouwkundigen.
Atlas Amstelland – Biografie van een landschap presenteert de geschiedenis van Amstelland in een ... more Atlas Amstelland – Biografie van een landschap presenteert de geschiedenis van Amstelland in een reeks nieuw getekende kaarten, gebaseerd op de resultaten van recent onderzoek. Daarop is te zien hoe dit landschap zich ontwikkelde van veenwildernis tot geliefd groengebied aan de rand van Amsterdam.
Het veenmoeras aan de rand van de bewoonde wereld werd ontgonnen vanaf de elfde eeuw. Een deel van de Amstel werd gegraven om water uit het veen af te voeren. In de dertiende eeuw kwam een nieuwe macht op: Amsterdam. Het stadje bij de dam in de Amstel groeide in de Gouden Eeuw uit tot een van de grootste metropolen van Europa.
De nabijheid van de stad veroorzaakte grote veranderingen in Amstelland. Veel land veranderde door turfwinning in water en werd vervolgens drooggemaakt. Het laagliggende veen kon onder water worden gezet ter verdediging van Amsterdam. In de loop der eeuwen raakten stad en land steeds meer met elkaar vergroeid. De laatste zestig jaar zijn grote delen van Amstelland volgebouwd. Deze rijk geïllustreerde atlas laat zien dat het landelijk gebied niet te begrijpen is zonder kennis van de stad, en andersom.
This atlas presents the history of Amstelland through a series of maps, based on recent scientifi... more This atlas presents the history of Amstelland through a series of maps, based on recent scientific insights. The maps illustrate the development of Amstelland from a desolate marsh to medieval reclamations, from estate landscape to much loved green oasis on the edge of Amsterdam.
The peat marsh on the edge of the world was gradually reclaimed from the 11th century onwards; a section of the Amstel even originated as a drainage canal. The Lords Van Amstel ruled the area from their stronghold in Ouderkerk, but their role was finished after the involvement of Gijsbrecht van Amstel in the murder of count of Holland Floris V in 1296. A new power arose in the 13th century: Amsterdam. The insignificant village near a dam in the Amstel was transformed into one of the largest metropolises in Europe. Its warehouses hoarded the wealth of many nations. Meanwhile, Amstelland had its own treasures: turves, cattle, and the pleasures of country life. Its farmers supplied the urban markets, its infrastructure was guaranteed by the city, comfortable country estates multiplied, and by the 17th century, the Dutch Golden Age, the river Amstel had become Amsterdam's pleasure garden where urbanites whiled away their Sundays.
Into this landscape the proximity of the city introduced major changes. Much of it was transformed by underwater peat extraction, to subsequently fall dry again, thanks to urban investments. The military, too, had a lasting impact on the Amstelland landscape. Its low peat lands could be easily inundated, changing them into a virtually impenetrable barrier around Amsterdam.The Stelling van Amsterdam, constructed between 1881 and 1914, was only the last in a long series of defensive water lines. The past sixty years saw large sections of Amstelland being turned into urban zones. It was the culmination of centuries of ever more intense relations between city and countryside, making it impossible to understand the one without also studying the other.
Tijdschrift voor historische geografie, May 1, 2024
A new landscape map of The Netherlands: previous history and basic principles Since the late 19th... more A new landscape map of The Netherlands: previous history and basic principles Since the late 19th century numerous Dutch geographers have made landscape typologies of The Netherlands. In 1951 the first landscape map of The Netherlands was published by Hendrik Keuning, depicting eleven landscape types and seven subtypes. Additional maps were made by Bijhouwer (1971), Visscher (1972) and the Working Group of Landscape Typology (1986). All map legends were based on soil types on the first level and cultural landscape characteristics on the second level. This paper describes a new landscape map of The Netherlands that will be published in a handbook called Landscapes of The Netherlands. Compared to former maps several landscapes have been split up into various regional landscape types, such as the sandy landscapes, marine clay landscapes, peat landscapes and river landscapes. Due to new scientific insights into the decay of peat in several regions of the Netherlands the mapping of medieval peat reclamation landscapes is more extensive on the new map.
This paper represents an attempt at a detailed analysis of woodland presence and dynamics during ... more This paper represents an attempt at a detailed analysis of woodland presence and dynamics during the Middle Ages (AD 500-1500), as a contribution to the current debate on large-scale reforestation in the Netherlands. Palynological data for this particular period are scarce and allow only global reconstructions. To widen our search for historical woodland proxies, we investigated the potential of archaeologically excavated tree-trunk wells. We carried out a nationwide inventory of this type of well, in which the shaft is formed by hollowed-out tree trunks, typically large oak trees. Our suspicion that such trees indicate the local presence of (old) woodland in the past was confirmed by a marked positive correlation with spatial reconstructions based on other sources of information: archaeological (charcoal kilns) and non-archaeological (place names and historical references). The observed correlations suggest that mapping the distribution of precisely dated tree-trunk wells can indeed contribute to achieving fairly detailed reconstructions of medieval woodland cover.
A new landscape map of The Netherlands: previous history and basic
principles
Since the late 19th... more A new landscape map of The Netherlands: previous history and basic principles Since the late 19th century numerous Dutch geographers have made landscape typologies of The Netherlands. In 1951 the first landscape map of The Netherlands was published by Hendrik Keuning, depicting eleven landscape types and seven subtypes. Additional maps were made by Bijhouwer (1971), Visscher (1972) and the Working Group of Landscape Typology (1986). All map legends were based on soil types on the first level and cultural landscape characteristics on the second level. This paper describes a new landscape map of The Netherlands that will be published in a handbook called Landscapes of The Netherlands. Compared to former maps several landscapes have been split up into various regional landscape types, such as the sandy landscapes, marine clay landscapes, peat landscapes and river landscapes. Due to new scientific insights into the decay of peat in several regions of the Netherlands the mapping of medieval peat reclamation landscapes is more extensive on the new map.
Città e cibo dall'antichità a oggi. Cities and food from past to present, 2023
Starting from the common idea of Renaissance born in the Northern Italian city-states as a period... more Starting from the common idea of Renaissance born in the Northern Italian city-states as a period of renewed interest in arts, literature, architecture and thinking, based on the principles found in the classical Greek/Roman world, in this essay it will be seen through a new view from an anthropological, art-historical and city-historical point with the consequences it had in the early seventeenth century in Amsterdam.
Plans for the expansion of the present woodland cover exist all over the world, with climate ambi... more Plans for the expansion of the present woodland cover exist all over the world, with climate ambitions (carbon capture, climate adaptation), sustainability, the preservation of biodiversity, and the reduction of recreational pressure among the arguments being cited. The question is where and how to create new woodland. As a contribution to the current debate on large-scale reforestation in the Netherlands, we have tried to conduct a quick and overall scan to determine whether the spatial distribution of woodland-related place names can have an evidential value for locating surviving woodland in the high and late Middle Ages (AD 1000–1500). To do so, we have made extensive use of digital data sets and existing inventories (place names, field names, historical maps, charcoal production sites, ancient woodland, ancient woodland indicator plants). Results suggest that although the spatial reconstructions produced are biased due to multiple factors, pre-1500 place names in combination with historical woodland references and other woodland proxies can indeed be used to quickly and roughly reconstruct the distribution of woodland and even of specific historical woodland types. A precondition is the availability of existing inventories and digital data sets.
Plans for the expansion of the present woodland cover exist all over the world, with climate ambi... more Plans for the expansion of the present woodland cover exist all over the world, with climate ambitions (carbon capture, climate adaptation), sustainability, the preservation of biodiversity, and the reduction of recreational pressure among the arguments being cited. The question is where and how to create new woodland. As a contribution to the current debate on large-scale reforestation in the Netherlands, we have tried to conduct a quick and overall scan to determine whether the spatial distribution of woodland-related place names can have an evidential value for locating surviving woodland in the high and late Middle Ages (AD 1000–1500). To do so, we have made extensive use of digital data sets and existing inventories (place names, field names, historical maps, charcoal production sites, ancient woodland, ancient woodland indicator plants). Results suggest that although the spatial reconstructions produced are biased due to multiple factors, pre-1500 place names in combination with historical woodland references and other woodland proxies can indeed be used to quickly and roughly reconstruct the distribution of woodland and even of specific historical woodland types. A precondition is the availability of existing inventories and digital data sets.
The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, as part of the Ministry of Education, Culture an... more The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, as part of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, executes a program on water and heritage. The program aims to provide information that can be of use in spatial planning by civil services. The underlying principle of the program is the premise that archaeologists and other cultural heritage professionals have the knowledge and means to make cross-overs between heritage and climate change and issues related to this, such as flooding and drought. The program consists of numerous projects, such as cultural heritage research as a knowledge base for predicting the location of water related problems in cities and researching the relation between soil, subsoil and water systems and the location and development of cities. This article digs deeper into the concept of using past data for present issues. It provides examples of how archaeological data and historical analysis can be used for current and future water-management problems.
Het betreft de volledige digitale dataset van het project ‘Archeologische Landschappenkaart van N... more Het betreft de volledige digitale dataset van het project ‘Archeologische Landschappenkaart van Nederland’ , onderdeel van het programma Kenniskaart Archeologie van de Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed (RCE). Het project is uitgevoerd van november 2013 tot en met mei 2015 door medewerkers van de afdeling Landschap en de afdeling Archeologie van de Rijksdienst. De kaart maakt de landschappelijke en hiermee verbonden archeologische diversiteit van Nederland inzichtelijk. Het kaartbeeld is zowel landschappelijk als archeologisch relevant en betekenisvol op nationale schaal. Anders geformuleerd: de op de Archeologische Landschappenkaart afgebeelde ruimtelijke eenheden (landschappen en landschapszones) zijn ook uit archeologische oogpunt onderscheidend. Op de Archeologische Landschappenkaart worden 26 landschappen onderscheiden en daarbinnen landschapszones. Deze zoneringen zijn niet alleen gebaseerd op landschappelijke kenmerken, maar ook op verwachte archeologische verschillen. Ze kunnen daarom helpen om archeologische verwachtingen toe te kennen. Daarnaast helpt de kaart om de juiste methoden en technieken te bepalen waarmee deze verwachte archeologische resten het beste kunnen worden opgespoord. De kaart wordt gebruikt voor de projecten Verwachtingen in lagen en Best practices prospectie van de RCE.
ABSTRACT This report gives a manual to the set of maps made for the western Wadden Sea. The Natio... more ABSTRACT This report gives a manual to the set of maps made for the western Wadden Sea. The National Heritage Agency of the Netherlands started in 2012 with the development of sets of maps for specific pilot areas in the Netherlands. For these areas historical geomorphological sets of maps of the underwater landscape were made. One of these pilot areas was the western Wadden Sea. This report explains the choice for this area and what choices with the area were made. An important part of the Dutch archaeological heritage is under water. Examples of these are drowned landscapes, remains of settlements dating from prehistory until the Middle Ages, shipwrecks and other archaeological remains. Evaluation of archaeological legislation, however, shows under water landscapes get left behind when it comes to the care of our archaeological heritage. Therefor it is of utmost importance to share our knowledge on archaeology under water with researchers as well as policymakers. This set of maps contributes to that. Text in Dutch
Een stadsgenese is een 3D-verbeelding van de relatie van een locatie met het natuurlijke systeem ... more Een stadsgenese is een 3D-verbeelding van de relatie van een locatie met het natuurlijke systeem van bodem, water en groen/ natuur en van de ingrepen van de mens in het natuurlijke systeem door de eeuwen heen. Genese betekent letterlijk ‘wording’ of ‘ontstaan’. Inzicht in het ontstaan biedt houvast om vanuit de identiteit van de plek te werken aan maatschappelijke opgaven zoals klimaatadaptatie en energietransitie.
Een stadsgenese kan op verschillende schaalniveaus worden uitgewerkt. In deze website worden 3 schaalniveaus onderscheiden: een stad/dorp, een gebied en een wijk. Voor het stadsniveau is recentelijk een boek gepresenteerd. De inhoud ervan staat ook op deze website onder ‘stad/dorp’. Daarnaast wordt ook uitgelegd hoe je zelf een genese kan maken.
Het landschap van West-Nederland is het resultaat van een eeuwenlange wisselwerking tussen mens e... more Het landschap van West-Nederland is het resultaat van een eeuwenlange wisselwerking tussen mens en natuur. Ook het gebied rond de Schie, tussen Delft, Schiedam en Rotterdam, is een oud landschap. Dat begon al ruim vóór onze jaartelling toen de eerste mensen zich in deze streek vestigden. In de vroege middeleeuwen was de Schie slechts een veenriviertje. Tussen 1000 en 1200 werden de woeste veengronden ontgonnen tot een agrarisch cultuurlandschap. Na deze grote ontginning diende de Schie als afwateringskanaal, maar ook als vaarverbinding tussen de opkomende steden. In de Gouden Eeuw werd het een trekvaartroute en een vaarweg voor de binnenvaart. Het omringende landschap veranderde al die eeuwen mee. Door de uitstekende bereikbaarheid van het waterrijke gebied kwamen de steden op. De concurrenten Schiedam, Delft en Rotterdam groeven kanalen om zichzelf de beste positie in het Hollandse handelsnetwerk te verschaffen. De steden begonnen aan een periode van ongekende groei. Stadsuitbreidingen schoven steeds verder over het oude cultuurlandschap heen. Agrarisch gebruik maakte plaats voor recreatie, cultuurgebieden werden ten slotte omgevormd tot ‘nieuwe’ natuur. De cirkel lijkt weer rond. De Atlas van de Schie vertelt met oude én nieuwe kaarten het verhaal hoe een kanaaltje in het nog praktisch onbevolkte Holland een vaarweg werd in het sterkst verstedelijkte deel van Nederland. Al 2500 jaar werkt en sleutelt men aan landschap en infrastructuur, en dat zal men blijven doen. Het is nooit af.
Erfgoedbalans 2009. Archeologie, monumenten en cultuurlandschap in Nederland, 2009
The Heritage Review 2009 describes the latest situation as regards archaeology, monuments and his... more The Heritage Review 2009 describes the latest situation as regards archaeology, monuments and historic buildings and the cultural landscape in the Netherlands.
- 2009a: M. de Boer, E. van As, H.J.P.M. van den Besselaar, E. Beukers, O. Brinkkemper, P.W.F. Brinkman, A. Haytsma, M.C. Kosian, R.C.G.M. Lauwerier, M.W. Schnitker, H.J.T. Weerts (eds.): Erfgoedbalans 2009. Archeologie, monumenten en cultuurlandschap in Nederland. Amersfoort: Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed.
Veldnamen waren de straatnamen van het platteland. Welke akker, elk stukje groenland of opvallend... more Veldnamen waren de straatnamen van het platteland. Welke akker, elk stukje groenland of opvallende plekjes had een eigen betekenisvolle naam. Zonder kaart of navigatiesysteem vonden dorpsbewoners feilloos de weg naar het Torenveen, de Meulenakkers of het Stoefgat. Veldnamen vormden een vanzelfsprekend onderdeel van hun leefomgeving. Ze waren onmisbaar voor de oriëntatie en handig in de communicatie. Dit rijk geïllustreerde boek bevat een verhelderende essays en boeiende interviews. Het opent de schatkist die het veldnamenbezit in al zijn rijkdom, variatie en betekenis vormt. 'Van Jeruzalem tot Ezelakker' vertelt over het landschap vanaf het moment dat het nog woest en ledig was en ontcijfert de geheimtaal die het al eeuwen in zich draagt.
Tussen de Haarlemmerpoort en Halfweg ligt een landschap dat weinigen echt kennen: de Brettenzone.... more Tussen de Haarlemmerpoort en Halfweg ligt een landschap dat weinigen echt kennen: de Brettenzone. Een afwisseling van oud en nieuw, agrarisch en industrieel landschap, van infrastructuur en natuur.
De Brettenzone komt voort uit het beroemde Algemeen Uitbreidingsplan van Amsterdam uit 1935. Dat voorzag in een groene zone tussen de Westelijke Tuinsteden en het havengebied.
Maar in de uitvoering was vooral aandacht voor woningbouw en havenuitbreiding. Ertussen bleef een versnipperd gebied over, een openluchtmuseum van half uitgevoerde plannen, een rijk maar onontdekt cultuurlandschap.
Tussen Haarlemmerpoort en Halfweg presenteert de geschiedenis van de Brettenzone in een reeks nieuw getekende kaarten met een heldere toelichting. Deze atlas laat zien hoe dit landschap zich ontwikkelde van veenmoeras tot middeleeuwse ontginning, van landgoederenzone tot stadsrand.
Met daarin de eerste trekvaart uit de Gouden Eeuw en de oudste spoorlijn van Nederland, maar ook de Westergasfabriek en Sugar City. Een stedelijk landschap waarin de natuur – voor het eerst sinds de vroege middeleeuwen – op veel plekken de overhand krijgt.
De Brettenzone zal de komende jaren door zijn ligging een sleutelrol spelen in de ontwikkeling van de Metropoolregio Amsterdam, als groene en blauwe as van de stad naar de kust. Deze atlas is daarom niet alleen van belang voor historisch geïnteresseerde lezers, maar ook voor architecten, landschapsontwerpers en stedenbouwkundigen.
Atlas Amstelland – Biografie van een landschap presenteert de geschiedenis van Amstelland in een ... more Atlas Amstelland – Biografie van een landschap presenteert de geschiedenis van Amstelland in een reeks nieuw getekende kaarten, gebaseerd op de resultaten van recent onderzoek. Daarop is te zien hoe dit landschap zich ontwikkelde van veenwildernis tot geliefd groengebied aan de rand van Amsterdam.
Het veenmoeras aan de rand van de bewoonde wereld werd ontgonnen vanaf de elfde eeuw. Een deel van de Amstel werd gegraven om water uit het veen af te voeren. In de dertiende eeuw kwam een nieuwe macht op: Amsterdam. Het stadje bij de dam in de Amstel groeide in de Gouden Eeuw uit tot een van de grootste metropolen van Europa.
De nabijheid van de stad veroorzaakte grote veranderingen in Amstelland. Veel land veranderde door turfwinning in water en werd vervolgens drooggemaakt. Het laagliggende veen kon onder water worden gezet ter verdediging van Amsterdam. In de loop der eeuwen raakten stad en land steeds meer met elkaar vergroeid. De laatste zestig jaar zijn grote delen van Amstelland volgebouwd. Deze rijk geïllustreerde atlas laat zien dat het landelijk gebied niet te begrijpen is zonder kennis van de stad, en andersom.
This atlas presents the history of Amstelland through a series of maps, based on recent scientifi... more This atlas presents the history of Amstelland through a series of maps, based on recent scientific insights. The maps illustrate the development of Amstelland from a desolate marsh to medieval reclamations, from estate landscape to much loved green oasis on the edge of Amsterdam.
The peat marsh on the edge of the world was gradually reclaimed from the 11th century onwards; a section of the Amstel even originated as a drainage canal. The Lords Van Amstel ruled the area from their stronghold in Ouderkerk, but their role was finished after the involvement of Gijsbrecht van Amstel in the murder of count of Holland Floris V in 1296. A new power arose in the 13th century: Amsterdam. The insignificant village near a dam in the Amstel was transformed into one of the largest metropolises in Europe. Its warehouses hoarded the wealth of many nations. Meanwhile, Amstelland had its own treasures: turves, cattle, and the pleasures of country life. Its farmers supplied the urban markets, its infrastructure was guaranteed by the city, comfortable country estates multiplied, and by the 17th century, the Dutch Golden Age, the river Amstel had become Amsterdam's pleasure garden where urbanites whiled away their Sundays.
Into this landscape the proximity of the city introduced major changes. Much of it was transformed by underwater peat extraction, to subsequently fall dry again, thanks to urban investments. The military, too, had a lasting impact on the Amstelland landscape. Its low peat lands could be easily inundated, changing them into a virtually impenetrable barrier around Amsterdam.The Stelling van Amsterdam, constructed between 1881 and 1914, was only the last in a long series of defensive water lines. The past sixty years saw large sections of Amstelland being turned into urban zones. It was the culmination of centuries of ever more intense relations between city and countryside, making it impossible to understand the one without also studying the other.
Tijdschrift voor historische geografie, May 1, 2024
A new landscape map of The Netherlands: previous history and basic principles Since the late 19th... more A new landscape map of The Netherlands: previous history and basic principles Since the late 19th century numerous Dutch geographers have made landscape typologies of The Netherlands. In 1951 the first landscape map of The Netherlands was published by Hendrik Keuning, depicting eleven landscape types and seven subtypes. Additional maps were made by Bijhouwer (1971), Visscher (1972) and the Working Group of Landscape Typology (1986). All map legends were based on soil types on the first level and cultural landscape characteristics on the second level. This paper describes a new landscape map of The Netherlands that will be published in a handbook called Landscapes of The Netherlands. Compared to former maps several landscapes have been split up into various regional landscape types, such as the sandy landscapes, marine clay landscapes, peat landscapes and river landscapes. Due to new scientific insights into the decay of peat in several regions of the Netherlands the mapping of medieval peat reclamation landscapes is more extensive on the new map.
This paper represents an attempt at a detailed analysis of woodland presence and dynamics during ... more This paper represents an attempt at a detailed analysis of woodland presence and dynamics during the Middle Ages (AD 500-1500), as a contribution to the current debate on large-scale reforestation in the Netherlands. Palynological data for this particular period are scarce and allow only global reconstructions. To widen our search for historical woodland proxies, we investigated the potential of archaeologically excavated tree-trunk wells. We carried out a nationwide inventory of this type of well, in which the shaft is formed by hollowed-out tree trunks, typically large oak trees. Our suspicion that such trees indicate the local presence of (old) woodland in the past was confirmed by a marked positive correlation with spatial reconstructions based on other sources of information: archaeological (charcoal kilns) and non-archaeological (place names and historical references). The observed correlations suggest that mapping the distribution of precisely dated tree-trunk wells can indeed contribute to achieving fairly detailed reconstructions of medieval woodland cover.
A new landscape map of The Netherlands: previous history and basic
principles
Since the late 19th... more A new landscape map of The Netherlands: previous history and basic principles Since the late 19th century numerous Dutch geographers have made landscape typologies of The Netherlands. In 1951 the first landscape map of The Netherlands was published by Hendrik Keuning, depicting eleven landscape types and seven subtypes. Additional maps were made by Bijhouwer (1971), Visscher (1972) and the Working Group of Landscape Typology (1986). All map legends were based on soil types on the first level and cultural landscape characteristics on the second level. This paper describes a new landscape map of The Netherlands that will be published in a handbook called Landscapes of The Netherlands. Compared to former maps several landscapes have been split up into various regional landscape types, such as the sandy landscapes, marine clay landscapes, peat landscapes and river landscapes. Due to new scientific insights into the decay of peat in several regions of the Netherlands the mapping of medieval peat reclamation landscapes is more extensive on the new map.
Città e cibo dall'antichità a oggi. Cities and food from past to present, 2023
Starting from the common idea of Renaissance born in the Northern Italian city-states as a period... more Starting from the common idea of Renaissance born in the Northern Italian city-states as a period of renewed interest in arts, literature, architecture and thinking, based on the principles found in the classical Greek/Roman world, in this essay it will be seen through a new view from an anthropological, art-historical and city-historical point with the consequences it had in the early seventeenth century in Amsterdam.
Plans for the expansion of the present woodland cover exist all over the world, with climate ambi... more Plans for the expansion of the present woodland cover exist all over the world, with climate ambitions (carbon capture, climate adaptation), sustainability, the preservation of biodiversity, and the reduction of recreational pressure among the arguments being cited. The question is where and how to create new woodland. As a contribution to the current debate on large-scale reforestation in the Netherlands, we have tried to conduct a quick and overall scan to determine whether the spatial distribution of woodland-related place names can have an evidential value for locating surviving woodland in the high and late Middle Ages (AD 1000–1500). To do so, we have made extensive use of digital data sets and existing inventories (place names, field names, historical maps, charcoal production sites, ancient woodland, ancient woodland indicator plants). Results suggest that although the spatial reconstructions produced are biased due to multiple factors, pre-1500 place names in combination with historical woodland references and other woodland proxies can indeed be used to quickly and roughly reconstruct the distribution of woodland and even of specific historical woodland types. A precondition is the availability of existing inventories and digital data sets.
Plans for the expansion of the present woodland cover exist all over the world, with climate ambi... more Plans for the expansion of the present woodland cover exist all over the world, with climate ambitions (carbon capture, climate adaptation), sustainability, the preservation of biodiversity, and the reduction of recreational pressure among the arguments being cited. The question is where and how to create new woodland. As a contribution to the current debate on large-scale reforestation in the Netherlands, we have tried to conduct a quick and overall scan to determine whether the spatial distribution of woodland-related place names can have an evidential value for locating surviving woodland in the high and late Middle Ages (AD 1000–1500). To do so, we have made extensive use of digital data sets and existing inventories (place names, field names, historical maps, charcoal production sites, ancient woodland, ancient woodland indicator plants). Results suggest that although the spatial reconstructions produced are biased due to multiple factors, pre-1500 place names in combination with historical woodland references and other woodland proxies can indeed be used to quickly and roughly reconstruct the distribution of woodland and even of specific historical woodland types. A precondition is the availability of existing inventories and digital data sets.
The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, as part of the Ministry of Education, Culture an... more The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, as part of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, executes a program on water and heritage. The program aims to provide information that can be of use in spatial planning by civil services. The underlying principle of the program is the premise that archaeologists and other cultural heritage professionals have the knowledge and means to make cross-overs between heritage and climate change and issues related to this, such as flooding and drought. The program consists of numerous projects, such as cultural heritage research as a knowledge base for predicting the location of water related problems in cities and researching the relation between soil, subsoil and water systems and the location and development of cities. This article digs deeper into the concept of using past data for present issues. It provides examples of how archaeological data and historical analysis can be used for current and future water-management problems.
Het betreft de volledige digitale dataset van het project ‘Archeologische Landschappenkaart van N... more Het betreft de volledige digitale dataset van het project ‘Archeologische Landschappenkaart van Nederland’ , onderdeel van het programma Kenniskaart Archeologie van de Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed (RCE). Het project is uitgevoerd van november 2013 tot en met mei 2015 door medewerkers van de afdeling Landschap en de afdeling Archeologie van de Rijksdienst. De kaart maakt de landschappelijke en hiermee verbonden archeologische diversiteit van Nederland inzichtelijk. Het kaartbeeld is zowel landschappelijk als archeologisch relevant en betekenisvol op nationale schaal. Anders geformuleerd: de op de Archeologische Landschappenkaart afgebeelde ruimtelijke eenheden (landschappen en landschapszones) zijn ook uit archeologische oogpunt onderscheidend. Op de Archeologische Landschappenkaart worden 26 landschappen onderscheiden en daarbinnen landschapszones. Deze zoneringen zijn niet alleen gebaseerd op landschappelijke kenmerken, maar ook op verwachte archeologische verschillen. Ze kunnen daarom helpen om archeologische verwachtingen toe te kennen. Daarnaast helpt de kaart om de juiste methoden en technieken te bepalen waarmee deze verwachte archeologische resten het beste kunnen worden opgespoord. De kaart wordt gebruikt voor de projecten Verwachtingen in lagen en Best practices prospectie van de RCE.
ABSTRACT This report gives a manual to the set of maps made for the western Wadden Sea. The Natio... more ABSTRACT This report gives a manual to the set of maps made for the western Wadden Sea. The National Heritage Agency of the Netherlands started in 2012 with the development of sets of maps for specific pilot areas in the Netherlands. For these areas historical geomorphological sets of maps of the underwater landscape were made. One of these pilot areas was the western Wadden Sea. This report explains the choice for this area and what choices with the area were made. An important part of the Dutch archaeological heritage is under water. Examples of these are drowned landscapes, remains of settlements dating from prehistory until the Middle Ages, shipwrecks and other archaeological remains. Evaluation of archaeological legislation, however, shows under water landscapes get left behind when it comes to the care of our archaeological heritage. Therefor it is of utmost importance to share our knowledge on archaeology under water with researchers as well as policymakers. This set of maps contributes to that. Text in Dutch
The awareness that cultural heritage plays an influential role in shared identities and in both s... more The awareness that cultural heritage plays an influential role in shared identities and in both spatial and environmental development has significantly increased in recent years. International collaboration and treaties, such as the 'FARO-convention' in 2005 emphasize the importance of heritage in relation to aspects of human rights and demography. Furthermore, it is becoming increasingly clear that historical perspectives are essential for making well-informed choices regarding environmental challenges (e.g. spatial planning, sustainable development, climate adaptation). This increased awareness not only emphasizes the importance of cultural heritage for present-day challenges, but equally presents a new set of conditions and standards, and requires the development of new methodologies. Besides conservation, more than ever there is a need for cultural heritage to become contextualized and sustainably accessible. The organisational pinnacle of cultural-heritage conservation is world heritage: sites that are judged to contain a set of cultural and/or natural values which are of outstanding value to humanity. However, to what extent world heritage meets these newly set criteria is unknown. Nevertheless, these sites often reflect an eminent status, scientifically as well as economically (i.e. through tourism). Consequently, world heritage often enjoys interest from multiple stakeholders including governmental, scientific, public, and commercial parties, all of whom engage in contrasting activities and have different interests and needs. As a result the need for accessibility and integrated overviews of these sites is high but equally challenging. In this paper we will focus on the world-heritage site of Schokland (NL). This former island in the Dutch Zuiderzee both reflects outstanding historical and archaeological importance. We will show that the dynamics surrounding this site require tailormade conservation methodologies, which greatly depend on data integration. We present a new Historical Geographical Information System (HGIS) specifically designed to integrate cultural and geoscientific data and facilitate dynamic heritage management. Results show that such a system greatly adds to the contextualization and (digital) accessibility of the heritage site and is essential for substantiating conservation methodologies. Furthermore, it shows great research potential for diachronological reconstructions of dynamic-lowland development. The system facilitates multidisciplinary scientific analyses, integrated monitoring, and public outreach and shows great application potential for other (world-)heritage sites.
During the Dutch Golden Age, Amsterdam grew from a modest little town on the river Amstel into a ... more During the Dutch Golden Age, Amsterdam grew from a modest little town on the river Amstel into a powerful trading metropolis. Thanks to several very large-scale expansion schemes (in particular the third and fourth expansions), it became one of the biggest cities in Europe. This article does not focus on the design or implementation of the urban expansions. Instead, it concentrates on a subsequent phase in the development: the moment when the large public project broke up into thousands of private projects, which occurred when the government sold off building plots. The key questions posed in this article are whether the large scale of these expansions stimulated entrepreneurship in the building sector, and how that affected the urban landscape. Was there any increase in scale in the building sector, how did the sector deal with the opportunities offered by urban expansion and what strategies did it employ? It is the first time that such a very large quantitative study has been carr...
‘Sluisbuurt’ Amsterdam: world heritage and high-rise buildings On the northwestern part of the Ze... more ‘Sluisbuurt’ Amsterdam: world heritage and high-rise buildings On the northwestern part of the Zeeburgereiland, an island in the IJ, the municipality of Amsterdam is developing the Sluisbuurt quarter: a mixed-use neighbourhood with shops, offices, catering and education and no less than 5,500 residential units, some of which are high-rise. The Sluisbuurt soon proved controversial because of the visibility of the towers from the Amsterdam city centre and from the rural area around Waterland. In this article we discuss the planning and the history of the island.
The Landscape Department of the Dutch Cultural Heritage Agency (Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Er... more The Landscape Department of the Dutch Cultural Heritage Agency (Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed) has been working on a GIS-cartography project, focusing on a large set of historical data that has come down to us from seventeenth-century Amsterdam, a large part of which was recently included in UNESCO's World Heritage List. Jaap Evert Abrahamse, researcher of the history of urbanism, and Menne Kosian, researcher of spatial analysis, were involved in the project, together with Erik Schmitz, researcher of topography at the Amsterdam City Archives (Stadsarchief Amsterdam). This article presents the first results. It contains a short introduction to urbanism in the Dutch Golden Age, the growth of Amsterdam and the way land in the city's extensions was auctioned by the city administration. The GIS project is explained and a transect of the city is highlighted. First observations show that GIS research of financial and ownership data can contribute to our knowledge of econom...
Few landscapes change more rapid than the marine. Sandbanks, channels and even complete coastline... more Few landscapes change more rapid than the marine. Sandbanks, channels and even complete coastlines can change dramatically overnight. This is a threat not only for modern mariners, our seafaring forefathers knew this problem also all too well. With modern techniques we can monitor these changes and adapt our maps on a regular basis. These techniques not only provide saver shipping, they can also be used to find the wreck of unfortunate former mariners. How can this method be used to predict where wrecks can be found. And, if a wreck is found, is it possible to preserve it? In order to get a full picture of possible wreck sites, we need to know what the underwater landscape was in various periods, and how it has changed over time. Historic Cartographical analysis can give and insight in the use and sometimes in the morphology of former landscapes. The problem with this is that it only provides qualitative information; i.e. descriptive data (map legends, interpretations, names or rema...
Veldnamen waren de straatnamen van het platteland. Welke akker, elk stukje groenland of opvallend... more Veldnamen waren de straatnamen van het platteland. Welke akker, elk stukje groenland of opvallende plekjes had een eigen betekenisvolle naam. Zonder kaart of navigatiesysteem vonden dorpsbewoners feilloos de weg naar het Torenveen, de Meulenakkers of het Stoefgat. Veldnamen vormden een vanzelfsprekend onderdeel van hun leefomgeving. Ze waren onmisbaar voor de oriëntatie en handig in de communicatie. Dit rijk geïllustreerde boek bevat een verhelderende essays en boeiende interviews. Het opent de schatkist die het veldnamenbezit in al zijn rijkdom, variatie en betekenis vormt. 'Van Jeruzalem tot Ezelakker' vertelt over het landschap vanaf het moment dat het nog woest en ledig was en ontcijfert de geheimtaal die het al eeuwen in zich draagt.
Modelling and mapping urbanization dynamics in the Lowlands
Jaap Evert Abrahamse & Menne Kosian
... more Modelling and mapping urbanization dynamics in the Lowlands
Jaap Evert Abrahamse & Menne Kosian
The impact of historical and archaeological research can be increased by the use of imaginative maps. The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands tries to offer both adequate scientific information as well as information to a wider audience through several portals. In this contribution we will present two recent projects in which mapping was crucial: The Netherlands in 1575 and the Atlas of the Dutch Urban Landscape.
The first project, The Netherlands in 1575, reconstructs the cultural and physical landscape of the Netherlands in the period of state formation during the Dutch revolt. In order to achieve this goal the map was constructed using an almost inverse method for landscape mapping. Starting point were the city plans by Jacob van Deventer (second half of the 16th century). These were georeferenced and digitized by using the modern street GIS systems. Next, the city plans were linked using modern research into regional and long-distance route networks in the Netherlands. These routes were based on landscape features as well as historical maps. This way both the methodology of the route networks research could be verified as well as the georeferencing method of the Van Deventer maps. This new and corrected ‘skeleton’ of medieval Dutch topography was confronted with recent research into the palaeogeography of the Netherlands. From a very detailed level, the general picture of the Netherlands in 1575 could be drawn, and refined where necessary. This produced a map that not only has a strong scientific base, but aims also to be used by the general public, zooming in on their hometown.
The Atlas of the Dutch Urban Landscape (published 2016) was the result of a cooperation of the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands and the Delft Chair of Architectural History. This research project aimed at creating a long-term overview of urbanization and urban practice in the Netherlands, the most densely urbanized country in Europe, and subsequently looking at the results from a European perspective. Its landscape of greater and smaller, older and younger towns was formed in the course of a millennium. What were the roots of this urban landscape, and how did it develop? Between 1300 and 1700, the Netherlands developed from a peripheral region into Europe’s epicentre. Over one hundred port towns sprang up in the 13th and 14th century, mainly in the western peat and clay areas and along major rivers like the Rhine and the Meuse. When the Republic became a world power in the Dutch Golden Age, vast urban extensions materialized in towns like Rotterdam, Leiden and especially Amsterdam. A century and a half of dramatic decline followed, coinciding with the rise of England and France as the new global powers. Industrialization in the Netherlands first gathered speed after 1870. It generated unprecedented urban extensions in the old towns and an upsurge of new town formations. Industrial centres and residential towns sprang up along the new railway network. In the course of the 20th century the Dutch government developed an internationally renowned planning apparatus which in the context of the post-WWII welfare state churned out an endless series of motorways, housing estates and business parks. The Atlas of the Dutch Urban Landscape contains a comprehensive synthesis of a millennium of spatial development. Series of maps, photos and paintings clearly illustrate processes of growth, stagnation and decline of Dutch towns. It is the first national overview of urbanization and urbanism and might be a potential source of inspiration for other nations in Europe and beyond.
Archaeological data gives us a narrow window on the environment people lived in: only the small a... more Archaeological data gives us a narrow window on the environment people lived in: only the small areas excavated give an insight of the landscape of the past. Historical research widens this vies, but still is limited since a lot of the ordinary every day lives of common people is not recorded. In order to get a better picture of the landscape of the past, influencing and (partly) formed by the people living in it we should turn to more sources.
One of those sources is the way people described their surroundings, but most of it is not recorded contemporary. But people still ‘remember’ their old surroundings: folk lore and stories tell us a great deal on the environment people of old lived in. And in old toponyms there is a great source of (sometimes hidden) information on land-use, nature and soil type.
But how can we incorporate this intangible heritage into modern, computerised research? In this paper I will give some examples of using this ‘new’ form of basic data in a GIS.
In 2011, the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands produced a new GIS-based map of the diff... more In 2011, the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands produced a new GIS-based map of the different landscapes of the Netherlands in a northwestern European perspective. A new spatial planning policy document was made by the national government, and the fact that we (as the Netherlands) have at least eleven different types of cultural landscapes was seen as a special quality, which should be cherished by the government. Because national spatial policies are more and more related to international developments, the agency was asked to make a map of the different Dutch landscapes in a northwestern European perspective.
The first layer of this map was the physical environment. While the Netherlands have the luxury to have 1:50.000 soil maps and geomorphological maps which are also aggregated to a higher landscape level, the surrounding countries do not always have such an instrument. So we had to make a new map, based on existing digital maps. This was done by expert judgement to attune existing maps to one another. Existing polygons of the digital maps were joined by reclassifying them at a higher scale level. This led to new aggregations of physical geographical landscape-units for the entire region, including the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, northern France and northwestern Germany. Next necessary steps will be refining the map and adding a layer for the anthropogenic landscapes and landscape development.
In this paper we will present the first version of this map and hope to get the discussion on pan-European anthropogenic landscapes going.
At present, the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands is developing a nationwide landscape ... more At present, the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands is developing a nationwide landscape Geographical Information System (GIS). In this new conceptual approach, the Agency puts together several multi-scale landscape classifications in a GIS. The natural physical landscapes lie at the basis of this GIS, because these landscapes provide the natural boundary conditions for anthropogenic. At the local scale a nationwide digital geomorphological GIS is available in the Netherlands. This map, that was originally mapped at 1:50,000 from the late 1970’s
to the 1990’s, is based on geomorphometrical (observable and measurable in the field), geomorphological and, lithological and geochronological criteria. When used at a national scale, the legend of this comprehensive geomorphological map is very complex which hampers use in e.g. planning practice or predictive archaeology. At the national scale several landscape classifications have been in use in the Netherlands since the early 1950’s, typically ranging in the order of 10 -15 landscape units for the entire country. A widely used regional predictive archaeological classification has 13 archaeo-landscapes. All these classifications have been defined “top-down” and their
actual content and boundaries have only been broadly defined. Thus, these classifications have little or no meaning at a local scale. We have tried to combine the local scale with the national scale. To do so, we first defined national physical geographical regions based on the new 2010 national geological map 1:500,000. We also made sure there was a reference with the European LANMAP2 classification. We arrived at 20 landscape units at the national scale, based on (1) genesis, (2) large-scale geomorphology, (3) lithology of the shallow sub-surface and (4) age. These criteria that were chosen because the genesis of the landscape largely determines its (scale of) morphology and
lithology that in turn determine hydrological conditions. All together, they define the natural boundary conditions for anthropogenic use. All units have been defined, mapped and described based on these criteria. This enables the link with the European LANMAP2 GIS. The unit “Till-plateau sand region” for instance runs deep into Germany and even Poland. At the local scale, the boundaries of the national units can be defined and precisely mapped by linking them to the 1:50,000 geomorphological map polygons. Each national unit consists of a typical assemblage of local geomorphological units. So, the newly developed natural physical landscape map layer can be used from
the local to the European scale.
Usually, Amsterdam is presented as a river city, with the river Amstel as the trade route towards... more Usually, Amsterdam is presented as a river city, with the river Amstel as the trade route towards its hinterland, the IJ sea-branch as the portal to the world and its Dam as a focal point of transshipment and trade.
Geomorphological, sedimentological, historical and historical-geographical evidence however, points towards the straight part of the Amstel, now located in Amsterdam, as a drainage canal that was dug in the aftermath of the ‘Great Reclamation’ of the 11th and 12th centuries. During this period, large parts of the wilderness in Utrecht and Holland were cultivated and put to agricultural use.
Prior to the ‘Great Reclamations’, large oligotrophic (Sphagnum) peat bogs drained by small rivers were characteristic of the entire region. All along the straight Amstel canal, Sphagnum peat is found, which is indicative of the area’s former peat bog conditions. The ‘Amstel Canal’ connected two natural meandering watercourses, one at the north and one at the south of the canal. The soil along both watercourses exists of eutrophic peat, which is
indicative of repeated natural flooding. This is a strong indication of the anthropogenous origin of the straight part of the Amstel.
The reason for digging the Amstel canal was not to create better trade links; it was a local component of a solution for major regional drainage problems in the provinces of Utrecht and Holland. These problems arose from the silting up of the Rhine rivermouth around 1100AD. Because of this, the precipitation surplus of the entire region could not be drained to the North Sea by this route anymore. This led to increased flooding and
subsequently to conflicts between the rulers of Holland and Utrecht. In 1165AD, these conflicts reached a point where the Holy Roman Emperor intervened. The ruling of Barbarossa eventually led to a compromise: Utrecht and Holland redirected the entire drainage system of the region from the North Sea to the Zuiderzee in a concerted effort. This operation consisted of the digging of many canals and the construction of several sluice complexes.
This shift from natural to man-made drainage systems was unprecedented at this scale in North-Western Europe.
An unlooked-for consequence of the digging the Amstel canal and many other drainage canals during and after the Great Reclamations was the layout of a network of infrastructure that later enabled the rise of cities in Holland.
Why was the Early-medieval trade-port of Dorestad located at a relatively inland position in the ... more Why was the Early-medieval trade-port of Dorestad located at a relatively inland position in the Rhine delta and not at the coast, as one would expect? We combined palaeogeographical, environmental-archaeological, geomorphological/geological and laser-altimetry data to propose an answer to this question. Local Dorestad data had to be combined with a regional paleogeographical reconstruction of active river branches in the 9th-century Rhine delta to come to a satisfactory answer.
The location of Dorestad on a high natural levee along a relatively stable navigable branch of the Rhine in the central Rhine delta was perfect for trade. The high levee gave protection from the annual river floods. Although this branch of the Rhine was fairly stable in the heydays of Dorestad, the meanders near Dorestad slowly migrated.
Excavations at Dorestad show that the harbour works of Dorestad were constantly adapted to this migration, thereby following the meander on which they were located. Ships could reach the port from the sea through at least three navigable Rhine branches: the Lek, the Old Rhine and the Vecht rivers. Dorestad was thus easily accessible and yet far enough from the coast to be safe from storm floods – but was it located at its specific location for these
reasons alone?
We combined existing geomorphological and geological maps with recent nation-wide laser-altimetry (AHN, General Elevation model of the Netherlands’) for a regional palaeogeographical reconstruction of 9th-century active Rhine branches in a GIS. This reconstruction revealed that river connections with the Flemish, French and German hinterland were perfect. Other delta branches ensured safe connections to the Zeeland delta and the open
Flemish coast, all the way to Dover Straight to the south and to the open Frisian coast all the way to present Southern Denmark in the North. The dangerously closed coast of Holland without any safe shelter places for storms could thus be avoided by ships coming in both from the South and from the North.
This interdisciplinary approach not only gave insight in the changing river activity, but also in the reasons why Dorestad could rise to its glory, and the possible reason for its demise as important Rhine branches silted up, while new branches developed into navigable waterways. The demise of Dorestad gave room for later river towns such as Tiel, Dordrecht and the cities along the IJssel.
The Netherlands have been an urbanized country since the Middle Ages. Over the last ten centuries... more The Netherlands have been an urbanized country since the Middle Ages. Over the last ten centuries a dense pattern of small, large, old and new towns emerged. How did this pattern develop and why do our towns look as they do?
From Friesland to Limburg, and from Groningen to Zeeland, dozens of towns were built during the Middle Ages, most of them along rivers and main waterways. When the Dutch Republic became a world power in the Dutch Golden Age, large extensions were realized in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Leiden. After a period of economic recession in the 18th century, the industrialisation caused some of these cities to prosper again from 1850 onwards. This not only led to a rapid growth of existing cities, but also to the emergence of new cities. Industrial centres like Tilburg and Hengelo and residential towns like Apeldoorn and Hilversum sprang up along the newly developed railways. Built under state control, new cities like Almere, Emmen and Zoetermeer emerged in the 20th century. In the post-war welfare state motorways, residential areas and industrial estates were laid out over the country at unprecedented speed. The Atlas of Urbanization in the Netherlands provides the first national overview of 1000 years of urban development. Its basis lies in an analysis of the 35 largest cities in the present-day Netherlands. By means of photographs, paintings and newly developed maps the growth and shrinkage of the Dutch cities is shown.
In 2011, the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands produced a new GIS-based map of the diff... more In 2011, the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands produced a new GIS-based map of the different landscapes of the Netherlands in a north-western European perspective. Because national spatial policies are more and more related to international developments, the agency was asked to make a map of the different Dutch landscapes in a north-western European perspective.
The first layer of this map was the physical environment. While the Netherlands have the luxury to have 1:50.000 soil maps and geomorphological maps which are also aggregated to a higher landscape level, the surrounding countries do not always have such an instrument. So we had to make a new map, based on existing digital maps. This was done by expert judgement to attune existing maps to one another. Existing polygons of the digital maps were joined by reclassifying them at a higher scale level. This led to new aggregations of physical geographical landscape-units for the entire region, including the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, northern France and north-western Germany.
For this European scale the Alterra LANMAP2 mapping was used as a basis. LANMAP2 had as an added bonus that this map also has information on land use and climate. This way a multi-disciplinary approach was possible. More landscape characterization issues could be added to this map.
The Cultural Heritage Agency is now working on developing a Landscape Characterization Framework GIS and an Landscape Archaeological GIS based on this north western European base map. This allows us to not only use landscape (archaeological) features on a national scale, but also to compare and cooperate with our direct neighbours in Europe… Moreover, the multi-disciplinary database behind this map also allows palaeo-geographic and palaeo-botanic reconstructions not restricted by modern national borders to be developed.
This poster presentation will give a few preliminary results of this new landscape maps.
In 2011, the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands produced a new GIS-based map of the die... more In 2011, the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands produced a new GIS-based map of the dierent landscapes of the Netherlands in a north-western European perspective.
Because national spatial policies are more and more related to international developments, the agency was asked to make a map of the dierent Dutch landscapes in a north-western European perspective.
The first layer of this map was the physical environment. While the Netherlands have the luxury to have 1:50.000 soil maps and geomorphological maps which are also aggregated to a higher landscape level, the surrounding countries do not always have such an instrument.
So we had to make a new map, based on new and existing digital maps. This was done by expert judgement to attune existing maps to one another. Existing polygons of the digital maps were joined by reclassifying them at a higher scale level. This led to new aggregations of physical geographical landscape-units for the entire region, including the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, northern France and north-western Germany.
With this new GIS dataset it was possible to extend this map to the historical landscape. Again, the Netherlands have the luxury to have a new palaeo-geographical atlas of the changes of the Dutch physical geography during the Holocene era. Combining these data with the new north-western European landscape GIS gave a rst historical layer on this map.
As a first period for the wider palaeo-geography the Roman era was chosen. For this map not only (palaeo-)geographical data was used, but also climatological data, new archaeological insights and bio-environmental data.
This multi-disciplinary approach makes it possible to map the natural boundary conditions for anthropogenic land use and development. The European scope of the map helps to see the broader historical context.
Three Roman boats that were salvaged along the limes, the former Rhine-based frontier of Germani... more Three Roman boats that were salvaged along the limes, the former Rhine-based frontier of Germania inferior, were not built locally. • This contrasts the original archaeological and dendrochronological interpretation. • The oak timbers originate from the civitas Menapiorum or the bordering region of civitas Nerviorum in the Scheldt region of Gallia Belgica (western Flanders, Belgium), • This demonstrates that the Romans maintained connections between this part of Gallia Belgica and the northern frontier of Germania inferior using inland navigation routes. • New interpretation driven by exchange of tree-ring data and associated research documents. • Dendrochronology provides new archaeological insight!
The Netherlands are an urbanized country. Over the last ten centuries a dense pattern of small, l... more The Netherlands are an urbanized country. Over the last ten centuries a dense pattern of small, large, old and new towns emerged. How did this pattern develop and why do our towns look as they do?
From Friesland to Limburg, and from Groningen to Zeeland, dozens of towns were built during the Middle Ages, most of them along rivers and main waterways. When the Dutch Republic became a world power in the Dutch Golden Age, large extensions were realized in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Leiden. After a period of economic recession in the 18th century, the industrialisation caused some of these cities to prosper again from 1850 onwards. This not only led to a rapid growth of existing cities, but also to the emergence of new cities. Industrial centres like Tilburg and Hengelo and residential towns like Apeldoorn and Hilversum sprang up along the newly developed railways. Built under state control new cities emerged in the 20th century, like Almere, Emmen and Zoetermeer. The post-war welfare state meant that motorways, residential areas and industrial estates were rolled out at high speed over the country.
The study of urban history is fragmented in different disciplines and local in character. The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands and the Delft Faculty of Architecture have created an overview on the basis of scattered research. This atlas provides an overview of a millennium of urban development for the first time. By means of photographs, paintings and newly developed maps the growth and shrinkage of the Dutch cities is shown. Current topics are discussed, like re-use, redevelopment and the transformations of inner cities and urban fringes. This is the first national long-term overview of urbanization and urban practice in Europe. In our presentation, we will highlight the emergence and development of the urban pattern and the morphology of the Dutch cityscape in the period from the Middle Ages and the early modern period.
In the past two years, the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands has developed a nationwide... more In the past two years, the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands has developed a nationwide landscape Geographical Information System (GIS). In this new conceptual approach, the Agency put together several multi-scale landscape classifications in a GIS. The natural physical landscapes lie at the basis of this GIS, because these landscapes provide the natural boundary conditions for anthropogenic activities. At the local scale a nationwide digital geomorphological GIS is available in the Netherlands. This map, that was originally mapped at 1:50,000 from the late 1970’s to the 1990’s, is based on geomorphometrical (observable and measurable in the field), geomorphological, lithological and geochronological criteria. When used at a national scale, the legend of this comprehensive geomorphological map is very complex which hampers use in e.g. planning practice or predictive archaeology. At the national scale several landscape classifications have been in use in the Netherlands since the early 1950’s, for the coastal area typically ranging in the order of 5 – 10 different landscape units. All these classifications have been defined “top-down” and their actual content and boundaries have only been broadly defined. Thus, these classifications have little or no meaning at a local scale. We combined the local scale with the national coastal scale. To do so, we first defined national physical geographical coastal regions based on the new 2010 national geological map 1:500,000. We also made sure there was a reference with the European LANMAP2 classification. Furthermore, we used a GIS that contained the position of all embankments and a new GIS with all the geological faults of TNO – Geological Survey of the Netherlands. We arrived at 9 coastal landscape units at the national scale, based on (1) genesis, (2) large-scale geomorphology, (3) lithology of the shallow sub-surface and (4) age. These criteria were chosen because the genesis of the landscape largely determines its (scale of) morphology and lithology that in turn determine hydrological conditions. All together, they define the natural boundary conditions for anthropogenic use. This enables the link with the European LANMAP2 GIS. The unit “Dunes and beaches” for instance exists along the entire North Sea coast from France to Denmark. At the local scale, the boundaries of the national units can be defined and precisely mapped by linking them to the 1:50,000 geomorphological map polygons. Each national unit consists of a typical assemblage of local geomorphological units. So, the newly developed natural physical landscape map layer can be used from the local to the European scale.
The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands has developed a new open access nationwide 1:50,0... more The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands has developed a new open access nationwide 1:50,000 landscape GIS. In the past decades, several " topdown " landscape classifications have been used in the Netherlands, typically ranging in the order of 10 15 landscape units for the entire country. Their actual content and boundaries have only been broadly defined. Thus, these classifications have little or no meaning at the local scale. In this new GIS, we first defined 26 national physical geographical regions based on (1) genesis, (2) largescale geomorphology, (3) lithology of the shallow subsurface and (4) age. These criteria were chosen because the genesis of the landscape largely determines its (scale of) morphology and lithology that in turn determine geohydrological conditions. These properties together provide the natural boundary conditions for anthropogenic activities. The boundaries of the landscapes at the local scale and those of smallscale landscape zones within the landscapes were defined and mapped based on a nationwide open access digital 1:50,000 geomorphological GIS. Additional information from the 1:50,000 digital soil map, an embankment GIS, 'Polder' GIS and a new GIS with all the geological faults were used where necessary. The GIS was furthermore linked with the European LANMAP2 classification.
Als wij nu naar het IJsselmeergebied kijken zien we een landschap van uitgestrekte polders en gro... more Als wij nu naar het IJsselmeergebied kijken zien we een landschap van uitgestrekte polders en grote watervlakten. Deze grote polders zijn drooggelegd vanaf 1930, te beginnen met de Wieringermeer. In 1932 kwam de Afsluitdijk gereed, waardoor het huidige IJsselmeer ontstond. Van vroeger kennen we het gebied nog als Zuiderzee, de grote zeearm die diep in Nederland stak en bij storm en hoge vloed het Hollandse land bedreigde. Veel verder terug gaan de herinneringen en verhalen vaak niet. Maar er is meer te vertellen over dit gebied. De grote Zuiderzee is namelijk nog helemaal niet zo oud.
De vroeg Middeleeuwse handelsnederzetting Dorestad lag op de grens van het gebied van de Franken,... more De vroeg Middeleeuwse handelsnederzetting Dorestad lag op de grens van het gebied van de Franken, Friezen, Saksen en Noormannen. Door deze grensfunctie en het feit dat het lag op de kruising van de grote handelssnelwegen van die tijd, de grote Europese rivieren, kon het uitgroeien tot een internationaal belangrijke handelsplaats. Via de Rijn werden goederen uit het Duitse achterland ingevoerd, via de Maas/Waal/Zoel verbindingen kwamen goederen en grondstoffen uit Frankrijk, Venetië en Byzantium, Via de Lek/Hollandse IJssel was een handel mogelijk met de Frans/Belgische kust en Engeland, en de Vecht/Zuiderzee gaf toegang tot Scandinavië.
De nederzetting groeide uit tot een stedelijk handelscentrum met uitgebreide havenwerken en opslagplaatsen, maar ook met werkplaatsen voor allerhande lokale productie. Daarnaast bleven er agrarische erven en boerderijen.
De vroege Middeleeuwen waren een tijd waarin de rivieren in Nederland grote veranderingen ondergingen. De hoofdwaterafvoer van de Rijn verlegde zich langzaam naar het zuiden, naar de Waal, nieuwe rivieren als de Lek, de Hollandse IJssel en later de IJssel vormden zich en trokken meer en meer water uit de oude hoofdtak van de Rijn. Uiteindelijk begon de Rijn bij Katwijk zelfs sterk te verzanden. Daarnaast kenmerkte de periode zich ook door enkele zeer grote overstromingen. De combinatie van deze verwoestende natuurrampen en het verdwijnen van de Rijn als belangrijke handels- en vaarroute leidden uiteindelijk tot het ophouden van Dorestad als handelscentrum.
Deze lezing geeft en overzicht van de groei, bloei en het uiteindelijke einde van Dorestad, waarbij de nieuwste inzichten in rivierdynamiek en geomorfogenese zijn meegenomen.
Allemansland
De ruimtelijke dynamiek van stadsrandzones
In mei 2014 verscheen de Atlas van de ve... more Allemansland De ruimtelijke dynamiek van stadsrandzones
In mei 2014 verscheen de Atlas van de verstedelijking in Nederland. 1000 jaar ruimtelijke ontwikkeling. Dit boek is het eindproduct van een langjarig onderzoeksproject van de Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed en de Technische Universiteit Delft. Het bevat een overzicht van duizend jaar stedenbouw in Nederland. De aard en de inrichting van stadsrandzones is een van de onderwerpen in de atlas.
In het traditionele beeld is het karakter van de stadsrand sterk veranderd: middeleeuwse en vroegmoderne steden zouden een strakke begrenzing hebben gehad, waarbij het contrast tussen stad en platteland zeer sterk was. Na de sloop van de stedelijke fortificaties in de 19de eeuw brak een periode aan van ongebreidelde stedelijke groei, waarbij de grens tussen stad en platteland vervaagde en steden zich als een olievlek uitspreidden over het landschap. Toen kwam de planning op, die een einde maakte aan de ordeloze ontwikkeling van stadsranden.
Dit beeld is gecreëerd onder invloed van de moderne stedenbouwkunde, waarbinnen het idee leefde dat het contrast tussen het stedelijke en rurale landschap moest worden verscherpt – en dat deze overgang maakbaar was. Men dacht te kunnen ontsnappen aan de logica waarin stad, periferie en platteland in elkaar overlopen. De stadsrand werd nu een ontwerpprobleem.
In onze bijdrage zullen wij kanttekeningen plaatsen bij dit idee. Uit recent onderzoek blijkt dat er ondanks de geplande grens rond historische steden een graduele overgangszone was tussen stad en platteland: de stedelijke periferie, waarin kleinschalige, op de stad gerichte functies hun plaats konden vinden, ook omdat de bereikbaarheid goed was, grondprijzen lager waren dan in de steden en stedelijke regelgeving minder streng of niet werd nageleefd en gehandhaafd, voorzover die überhaupt geldig was. In dit beeld is de periferie een broedplaats voor economische vitaliteit. Daarbij worden functies die in de steden niet te handhaven waren (zoals vervuilende en brandgevaarlijke bedrijvigheid of de behandeling van lijders aan besmettelijke ziekten) gecombineerd met functies die typisch waren voor de periferie, zoals tuinbouw of infrastructuur. De overloop uit de stad werd gecombineerd met een stedelijk platteland.
In onze bijdrage zullen we aan de hand van de onderzoeksresultaten uit de Atlas van de verstedelijking laten zien dat de continuïteit in de ontwikkeling van stadsranden groter is dan gedacht, omdat de ontwikkeling van de periferie inherent is aan die van de stad en omdat de mechanismen en functies die de ruimtelijke dynamiek ervan bepalen niet wezenlijk zijn veranderd.
1 Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed, Amersfoort.
Historical research in urban areas id often hampered by the lack of possibilities to link archiva... more Historical research in urban areas id often hampered by the lack of possibilities to link archival data to locations within the historic city. Most of the archival data are ordered around streets, boroughs etc, or based on "hearsay" localization like "it happened between here and there". traditional GIS mapping is not suitable to link datasources like this. The AmsterdamStreetGIS gives a tool for combining just that type of data with the historic city, and even visualize the changing city layout. This presentation gives an short introduction.
Integrating remote sensing with historical data to build a new indicative map of cultural values ... more Integrating remote sensing with historical data to build a new indicative map of cultural values for the Wadden Sea area.
Few landscapes change more rapidly than the cities. Historical-cartographical analysis can give u... more Few landscapes change more rapidly than the cities. Historical-cartographical analysis can give us an insight in the the morphology and land use of the dynamic urban landscape. The problem with this is that it only provides qualitative information; i.e. descriptive data (map legends, interpretations, names or remarks). In order to model changes in the urban landscape over time, the historical qualitative data should be ‘quantified’ in some way to make digital analysis possible. This ‘quantifying’ of data can also be used for modern qualitative maps, such as soil type maps or land use maps. This way historical data can be integrated with modern techniques.
In this lecture we will give an example of a method developed at the Cultural Heritage Agency in the Netherlands of integrating historical city maps with modern cartographic techniques. As a main research area, we will focus on the city of Amsterdam within its seventeenth-century borders. We have developed a specific GIS with which the growth and development of the city over time can be visualized and combined with external (archival) data.
We developed landscape reconstruction maps of Dorestads surroundings. These palaeogeomorphologica... more We developed landscape reconstruction maps of Dorestads surroundings. These palaeogeomorphological maps are based both on the research of Prof. Berendsen (Utrecht University) and the geo-physical survey of the sand deposits in the central river-valley by dr. Cohen. These sources are combined with high resolution modern LIDAR-data (the AHN dataset in a 5x5 meters grid) and give new insights in the highly dynamic river system in the early Middle Ages.
These maps not only give an insight on Dorestads direct surroundings, but also on the reason why Dorestad could flourish as a European emporium. The location of Dorestad on a high natural levee along a not so active branch of the Rhine in the central Rhine delta was perfect for trade. It was far enough from the coast to be safe from storm floods. The high levee also gave protection from the annual river floods. River connections with the Flemish, French and German hinterland were perfect. Other delta branches ensured safe connections to the Zeeland delta and the open Flemish coast all the way to Dover Straight to the south and to the open Frisian coast all the way to present Southern Denmark in the North. The dangerously closed coast of Holland without any safe shelter places for storms could thus be avoided by ships coming in both from the South and from the North.
Later changes in the river system also lead to the demise of Dorestad as an central emporium. The silting-up of the Rhine river to the west and the opening of the IJssel river in the east, made that the city lost its prime economic function.
Erfgoed. Nederland ligt er vol mee. Molens, stinsen, terpen, hunebedden. Duidelijke monumenten di... more Erfgoed. Nederland ligt er vol mee. Molens, stinsen, terpen, hunebedden. Duidelijke monumenten die het waard zijn beschermd te worden. Maar als je aan mensen vraagt of ze ook buiten de zeedijken erfgoed kennen is de reactie vaak “Erfgoed? Wat erfgoed, waar erfgoed?” Buiten de dijk begint de zee. En de zee is, zeker de Waddenzee, Natuur. Met een hoofdletter. Werelderfgoed zelfs. Natuur Erfgoed.
Maar de Waddenzee is ook door mensen gebruikt. En dat laat sporen na. Sporen van waaruit je zelfs grote gebeurtenissen uit de wereldgeschiedenis kan aflezen. De Amerikaanse revolutie, de opkomst van Napoleon, allemaal terug te vinden in he verhaal van de Waddenzee. De Waddenzee is niet alleen door mensen gebruikt, maar ook gevormd. Het is ook een dynamisch Cultuur Landschap.
Om dit culturele aspect te beschermen, en moeten we weten waar we wat kunnen verwachten. Binnen de dijken kennen we verschillende soorten verwachtings- en waarderingskaarten. Maar waar kunnen we erfgoed verwachten buiten de dijken? Dat landschap is zo dynamisch. Daar is niet Eén Kaart van te maken.
Binnen de RCE is nu een systematiek ontwikkeld die de dynamiek van dit zeelandschap recht doet, en een nieuwe manier van zoeken naar mogelijk erfgoed.
The renaissance in northern Europe was a time of turmoil. Europe was in a political crisis and ma... more The renaissance in northern Europe was a time of turmoil. Europe was in a political crisis and many wars were fought, draining capital from the cities and resources, especially food, from the countryside. Yet arts flourished and commerce bloomed like never before, cities like Antwerp and Amsterdam boomed. The renaissance was more than a societal and cultural phenomenon; it was a change in lifestyle.
In an internationally oriented city as Amsterdam, just freed from Spanish rule, people started to reinvent their lives. Not only were they looking at Italian, classical examples for to build their new society and urban environment, the most striking was the change in manners.
Although the Dutch protestant mores were of simplicity and austerity, the Amsterdam merchant elite were living a life of luxury. We know for instance from the Amsterdam’s archives that Petronian banquets were taking place, which led to the general prohibition such feasts in Amsterdam. The ideas of how to live the life didn’t come from these parts: they were imported from Italy. Antwerp and Amsterdam book printers translated and published many Italian renaissance works. These were not only works on politics and warfare, but also on cookery and table manners. Several Italian renaissance cooks became famous through translations of their work.
The result of this is best visible in the way Amsterdam merchants ate, and how it differed from their fellow countrymen. In this paper I like to give some examples of how Italian renaissance became a part of Amsterdam culture and (table)manners.
The late-Roman and early-medieval Netherlands witnessed major changes in landscape, economy, demo... more The late-Roman and early-medieval Netherlands witnessed major changes in landscape, economy, demography and also possibly climate. People had to adapt to increased flooding and changing river systems. Settlements were abandoned or relocated. The precise nature and extent of these adaptations reflected in large-scale patterns is generally unknown. Large-scale route networks will have changed during the late-Roman and earlymedieval period and are key to understand settlements dynamics.
We developed a network-friction model (NFM) which combines data on past environments with archaeological data in order to model historical-route networks. Network friction is the variable that determines potential regional accessibility based on the comparison of local and surrounding landscape factors (Van Lanen et al. submitted).
This course gives an introduction on the use of GIS in landscape and landscape archaeological res... more This course gives an introduction on the use of GIS in landscape and landscape archaeological research. It provides several examples and thoughts on the use and misuse of GIS and remote sensing.
Most GIS courses at universities focus mainly on the working of a specific programme. This will g... more Most GIS courses at universities focus mainly on the working of a specific programme. This will give students a basic capability of starting with GIS in their research. This course focusses on the more theoretical knowledge and guides students to a frame of mind to think for themselves and then use the possibilities of a GIS programme, rather than trust blindly the computer.
Although most people think of landscapes as the "dry" part of our world, especially in a cultural... more Although most people think of landscapes as the "dry" part of our world, especially in a cultural historical sense we should certainly include he sea and waterways into (historical) landscape research. This lecture gives an introduction on the maritime landscape, both the wet as well as the dry part of it.
This course gives an introduction on the use of GIS in landscape and landscape archaeological res... more This course gives an introduction on the use of GIS in landscape and landscape archaeological research. It provides several examples and thoughts on the use and misuse of GIS and remote sensing.
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Books by Menne Kosian
Een stadsgenese kan op verschillende schaalniveaus worden uitgewerkt. In deze website worden 3 schaalniveaus onderscheiden: een stad/dorp, een gebied en een wijk. Voor het stadsniveau is recentelijk een boek gepresenteerd. De inhoud ervan staat ook op deze website onder ‘stad/dorp’.
Daarnaast wordt ook uitgelegd hoe je zelf een genese kan maken.
Door de uitstekende bereikbaarheid van het waterrijke gebied kwamen de steden op. De concurrenten Schiedam, Delft en Rotterdam groeven kanalen om zichzelf de beste positie in het Hollandse handelsnetwerk te verschaffen. De steden begonnen aan een periode van ongekende groei. Stadsuitbreidingen schoven steeds verder over het oude cultuurlandschap heen. Agrarisch gebruik maakte plaats voor recreatie, cultuurgebieden werden ten slotte omgevormd tot ‘nieuwe’ natuur. De cirkel lijkt weer rond.
De Atlas van de Schie vertelt met oude én nieuwe kaarten het verhaal hoe een kanaaltje in het nog praktisch onbevolkte Holland een vaarweg werd in het sterkst verstedelijkte deel van Nederland. Al 2500 jaar werkt en sleutelt men aan landschap en infrastructuur, en dat zal men blijven doen. Het is nooit af.
- 2009a: M. de Boer, E. van As, H.J.P.M. van den Besselaar, E. Beukers, O. Brinkkemper, P.W.F. Brinkman, A. Haytsma, M.C. Kosian, R.C.G.M. Lauwerier, M.W. Schnitker, H.J.T. Weerts (eds.): Erfgoedbalans 2009. Archeologie, monumenten en cultuurlandschap in Nederland. Amersfoort: Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed.
De Brettenzone komt voort uit het beroemde Algemeen Uitbreidingsplan van Amsterdam uit 1935. Dat voorzag in een groene zone tussen de Westelijke Tuinsteden en het havengebied.
Maar in de uitvoering was vooral aandacht voor woningbouw en havenuitbreiding. Ertussen bleef een versnipperd gebied over, een openluchtmuseum van half uitgevoerde plannen, een rijk maar onontdekt cultuurlandschap.
Tussen Haarlemmerpoort en Halfweg presenteert de geschiedenis van de Brettenzone in een reeks nieuw getekende kaarten met een heldere toelichting. Deze atlas laat zien hoe dit landschap zich ontwikkelde van veenmoeras tot middeleeuwse ontginning, van landgoederenzone tot stadsrand.
Met daarin de eerste trekvaart uit de Gouden Eeuw en de oudste spoorlijn van Nederland, maar ook de Westergasfabriek en Sugar City. Een stedelijk landschap waarin de natuur – voor het eerst sinds de vroege middeleeuwen – op veel plekken de overhand krijgt.
De Brettenzone zal de komende jaren door zijn ligging een sleutelrol spelen in de ontwikkeling van de Metropoolregio Amsterdam, als groene en blauwe as van de stad naar de kust. Deze atlas is daarom niet alleen van belang voor historisch geïnteresseerde lezers, maar ook voor architecten, landschapsontwerpers en stedenbouwkundigen.
Het veenmoeras aan de rand van de bewoonde wereld werd ontgonnen vanaf de elfde eeuw. Een deel van de Amstel werd gegraven om water uit het veen af te voeren. In de dertiende eeuw kwam een nieuwe macht op: Amsterdam. Het stadje bij de dam in de Amstel groeide in de Gouden Eeuw uit tot een van de grootste metropolen van Europa.
De nabijheid van de stad veroorzaakte grote veranderingen in Amstelland. Veel land veranderde door turfwinning in water en werd vervolgens drooggemaakt. Het laagliggende veen kon onder water worden gezet ter verdediging van Amsterdam. In de loop der eeuwen raakten stad en land steeds meer met elkaar vergroeid. De laatste zestig jaar zijn grote delen van Amstelland volgebouwd. Deze rijk geïllustreerde atlas laat zien dat het landelijk gebied niet te begrijpen is zonder kennis van de stad, en andersom.
The peat marsh on the edge of the world was gradually reclaimed from the 11th century onwards; a section of the Amstel even originated as a drainage canal. The Lords Van Amstel ruled the area from their stronghold in Ouderkerk, but their role was finished after the involvement of Gijsbrecht van Amstel in the murder of count of Holland Floris V in 1296. A new power arose in the 13th century: Amsterdam. The insignificant village near a dam in the Amstel was transformed into one of the largest metropolises in Europe. Its warehouses hoarded the wealth of many nations. Meanwhile, Amstelland had its own treasures: turves, cattle, and the pleasures of country life. Its farmers supplied the urban markets, its infrastructure was guaranteed by the city, comfortable country estates multiplied, and by the 17th century, the Dutch Golden Age, the river Amstel had become Amsterdam's pleasure garden where urbanites whiled away their Sundays.
Into this landscape the proximity of the city introduced major changes. Much of it was transformed by underwater peat extraction, to subsequently fall dry again, thanks to urban investments. The military, too, had a lasting impact on the Amstelland landscape. Its low peat lands could be easily inundated, changing them into a virtually impenetrable barrier around Amsterdam.The Stelling van Amsterdam, constructed between 1881 and 1914, was only the last in a long series of defensive water lines. The past sixty years saw large sections of Amstelland being turned into urban zones. It was the culmination of centuries of ever more intense relations between city and countryside, making it impossible to understand the one without also studying the other.
Papers by Menne Kosian
principles
Since the late 19th century numerous Dutch geographers have made landscape
typologies of The Netherlands. In 1951 the first landscape map of The
Netherlands was published by Hendrik Keuning, depicting eleven landscape
types and seven subtypes. Additional maps were made by Bijhouwer (1971),
Visscher (1972) and the Working Group of Landscape Typology (1986).
All map legends were based on soil types on the first level and cultural
landscape characteristics on the second level. This paper describes a new
landscape map of The Netherlands that will be published in a handbook
called Landscapes of The Netherlands. Compared to former maps several
landscapes have been split up into various regional landscape types, such
as the sandy landscapes, marine clay landscapes, peat landscapes and river
landscapes. Due to new scientific insights into the decay of peat in several
regions of the Netherlands the mapping of medieval peat reclamation
landscapes is more extensive on the new map.
Een stadsgenese kan op verschillende schaalniveaus worden uitgewerkt. In deze website worden 3 schaalniveaus onderscheiden: een stad/dorp, een gebied en een wijk. Voor het stadsniveau is recentelijk een boek gepresenteerd. De inhoud ervan staat ook op deze website onder ‘stad/dorp’.
Daarnaast wordt ook uitgelegd hoe je zelf een genese kan maken.
Door de uitstekende bereikbaarheid van het waterrijke gebied kwamen de steden op. De concurrenten Schiedam, Delft en Rotterdam groeven kanalen om zichzelf de beste positie in het Hollandse handelsnetwerk te verschaffen. De steden begonnen aan een periode van ongekende groei. Stadsuitbreidingen schoven steeds verder over het oude cultuurlandschap heen. Agrarisch gebruik maakte plaats voor recreatie, cultuurgebieden werden ten slotte omgevormd tot ‘nieuwe’ natuur. De cirkel lijkt weer rond.
De Atlas van de Schie vertelt met oude én nieuwe kaarten het verhaal hoe een kanaaltje in het nog praktisch onbevolkte Holland een vaarweg werd in het sterkst verstedelijkte deel van Nederland. Al 2500 jaar werkt en sleutelt men aan landschap en infrastructuur, en dat zal men blijven doen. Het is nooit af.
- 2009a: M. de Boer, E. van As, H.J.P.M. van den Besselaar, E. Beukers, O. Brinkkemper, P.W.F. Brinkman, A. Haytsma, M.C. Kosian, R.C.G.M. Lauwerier, M.W. Schnitker, H.J.T. Weerts (eds.): Erfgoedbalans 2009. Archeologie, monumenten en cultuurlandschap in Nederland. Amersfoort: Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed.
De Brettenzone komt voort uit het beroemde Algemeen Uitbreidingsplan van Amsterdam uit 1935. Dat voorzag in een groene zone tussen de Westelijke Tuinsteden en het havengebied.
Maar in de uitvoering was vooral aandacht voor woningbouw en havenuitbreiding. Ertussen bleef een versnipperd gebied over, een openluchtmuseum van half uitgevoerde plannen, een rijk maar onontdekt cultuurlandschap.
Tussen Haarlemmerpoort en Halfweg presenteert de geschiedenis van de Brettenzone in een reeks nieuw getekende kaarten met een heldere toelichting. Deze atlas laat zien hoe dit landschap zich ontwikkelde van veenmoeras tot middeleeuwse ontginning, van landgoederenzone tot stadsrand.
Met daarin de eerste trekvaart uit de Gouden Eeuw en de oudste spoorlijn van Nederland, maar ook de Westergasfabriek en Sugar City. Een stedelijk landschap waarin de natuur – voor het eerst sinds de vroege middeleeuwen – op veel plekken de overhand krijgt.
De Brettenzone zal de komende jaren door zijn ligging een sleutelrol spelen in de ontwikkeling van de Metropoolregio Amsterdam, als groene en blauwe as van de stad naar de kust. Deze atlas is daarom niet alleen van belang voor historisch geïnteresseerde lezers, maar ook voor architecten, landschapsontwerpers en stedenbouwkundigen.
Het veenmoeras aan de rand van de bewoonde wereld werd ontgonnen vanaf de elfde eeuw. Een deel van de Amstel werd gegraven om water uit het veen af te voeren. In de dertiende eeuw kwam een nieuwe macht op: Amsterdam. Het stadje bij de dam in de Amstel groeide in de Gouden Eeuw uit tot een van de grootste metropolen van Europa.
De nabijheid van de stad veroorzaakte grote veranderingen in Amstelland. Veel land veranderde door turfwinning in water en werd vervolgens drooggemaakt. Het laagliggende veen kon onder water worden gezet ter verdediging van Amsterdam. In de loop der eeuwen raakten stad en land steeds meer met elkaar vergroeid. De laatste zestig jaar zijn grote delen van Amstelland volgebouwd. Deze rijk geïllustreerde atlas laat zien dat het landelijk gebied niet te begrijpen is zonder kennis van de stad, en andersom.
The peat marsh on the edge of the world was gradually reclaimed from the 11th century onwards; a section of the Amstel even originated as a drainage canal. The Lords Van Amstel ruled the area from their stronghold in Ouderkerk, but their role was finished after the involvement of Gijsbrecht van Amstel in the murder of count of Holland Floris V in 1296. A new power arose in the 13th century: Amsterdam. The insignificant village near a dam in the Amstel was transformed into one of the largest metropolises in Europe. Its warehouses hoarded the wealth of many nations. Meanwhile, Amstelland had its own treasures: turves, cattle, and the pleasures of country life. Its farmers supplied the urban markets, its infrastructure was guaranteed by the city, comfortable country estates multiplied, and by the 17th century, the Dutch Golden Age, the river Amstel had become Amsterdam's pleasure garden where urbanites whiled away their Sundays.
Into this landscape the proximity of the city introduced major changes. Much of it was transformed by underwater peat extraction, to subsequently fall dry again, thanks to urban investments. The military, too, had a lasting impact on the Amstelland landscape. Its low peat lands could be easily inundated, changing them into a virtually impenetrable barrier around Amsterdam.The Stelling van Amsterdam, constructed between 1881 and 1914, was only the last in a long series of defensive water lines. The past sixty years saw large sections of Amstelland being turned into urban zones. It was the culmination of centuries of ever more intense relations between city and countryside, making it impossible to understand the one without also studying the other.
principles
Since the late 19th century numerous Dutch geographers have made landscape
typologies of The Netherlands. In 1951 the first landscape map of The
Netherlands was published by Hendrik Keuning, depicting eleven landscape
types and seven subtypes. Additional maps were made by Bijhouwer (1971),
Visscher (1972) and the Working Group of Landscape Typology (1986).
All map legends were based on soil types on the first level and cultural
landscape characteristics on the second level. This paper describes a new
landscape map of The Netherlands that will be published in a handbook
called Landscapes of The Netherlands. Compared to former maps several
landscapes have been split up into various regional landscape types, such
as the sandy landscapes, marine clay landscapes, peat landscapes and river
landscapes. Due to new scientific insights into the decay of peat in several
regions of the Netherlands the mapping of medieval peat reclamation
landscapes is more extensive on the new map.
Jaap Evert Abrahamse & Menne Kosian
The impact of historical and archaeological research can be increased by the use of imaginative maps. The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands tries to offer both adequate scientific information as well as information to a wider audience through several portals. In this contribution we will present two recent projects in which mapping was crucial: The Netherlands in 1575 and the Atlas of the Dutch Urban Landscape.
The first project, The Netherlands in 1575, reconstructs the cultural and physical landscape of the Netherlands in the period of state formation during the Dutch revolt. In order to achieve this goal the map was constructed using an almost inverse method for landscape mapping. Starting point were the city plans by Jacob van Deventer (second half of the 16th century). These were georeferenced and digitized by using the modern street GIS systems. Next, the city plans were linked using modern research into regional and long-distance route networks in the Netherlands. These routes were based on landscape features as well as historical maps. This way both the methodology of the route networks research could be verified as well as the georeferencing method of the Van Deventer maps. This new and corrected ‘skeleton’ of medieval Dutch topography was confronted with recent research into the palaeogeography of the Netherlands. From a very detailed level, the general picture of the Netherlands in 1575 could be drawn, and refined where necessary. This produced a map that not only has a strong scientific base, but aims also to be used by the general public, zooming in on their hometown.
The Atlas of the Dutch Urban Landscape (published 2016) was the result of a cooperation of the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands and the Delft Chair of Architectural History. This research project aimed at creating a long-term overview of urbanization and urban practice in the Netherlands, the most densely urbanized country in Europe, and subsequently looking at the results from a European perspective. Its landscape of greater and smaller, older and younger towns was formed in the course of a millennium. What were the roots of this urban landscape, and how did it develop? Between 1300 and 1700, the Netherlands developed from a peripheral region into Europe’s epicentre. Over one hundred port towns sprang up in the 13th and 14th century, mainly in the western peat and clay areas and along major rivers like the Rhine and the Meuse. When the Republic became a world power in the Dutch Golden Age, vast urban extensions materialized in towns like Rotterdam, Leiden and especially Amsterdam. A century and a half of dramatic decline followed, coinciding with the rise of England and France as the new global powers. Industrialization in the Netherlands first gathered speed after 1870. It generated unprecedented urban extensions in the old towns and an upsurge of new town formations. Industrial centres and residential towns sprang up along the new railway network. In the course of the 20th century the Dutch government developed an internationally renowned planning apparatus which in the context of the post-WWII welfare state churned out an endless series of motorways, housing estates and business parks. The Atlas of the Dutch Urban Landscape contains a comprehensive synthesis of a millennium of spatial development. Series of maps, photos and paintings clearly illustrate processes of growth, stagnation and decline of Dutch towns. It is the first national overview of urbanization and urbanism and might be a potential source of inspiration for other nations in Europe and beyond.
One of those sources is the way people described their surroundings, but most of it is not recorded contemporary. But people still ‘remember’ their old surroundings: folk lore and stories tell us a great deal on the environment people of old lived in. And in old toponyms there is a great source of (sometimes hidden) information on land-use, nature and soil type.
But how can we incorporate this intangible heritage into modern, computerised research? In this paper I will give some examples of using this ‘new’ form of basic data in a GIS.
The first layer of this map was the physical environment. While the Netherlands have the luxury to have 1:50.000 soil maps and geomorphological maps which are also aggregated to a higher landscape level, the surrounding countries do not always have such an instrument. So we had to make a new map, based on existing digital maps. This was done by expert judgement to attune existing maps to one another. Existing polygons of the digital maps were joined by reclassifying them at a higher scale level. This led to new aggregations of physical geographical landscape-units for the entire region, including the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, northern France and northwestern Germany. Next necessary steps will be refining the map and adding a layer for the anthropogenic landscapes and landscape development.
In this paper we will present the first version of this map and hope to get the discussion on pan-European anthropogenic landscapes going.
to the 1990’s, is based on geomorphometrical (observable and measurable in the field), geomorphological and, lithological and geochronological criteria. When used at a national scale, the legend of this comprehensive geomorphological map is very complex which hampers use in e.g. planning practice or predictive archaeology. At the national scale several landscape classifications have been in use in the Netherlands since the early 1950’s, typically ranging in the order of 10 -15 landscape units for the entire country. A widely used regional predictive archaeological classification has 13 archaeo-landscapes. All these classifications have been defined “top-down” and their
actual content and boundaries have only been broadly defined. Thus, these classifications have little or no meaning at a local scale. We have tried to combine the local scale with the national scale. To do so, we first defined national physical geographical regions based on the new 2010 national geological map 1:500,000. We also made sure there was a reference with the European LANMAP2 classification. We arrived at 20 landscape units at the national scale, based on (1) genesis, (2) large-scale geomorphology, (3) lithology of the shallow sub-surface and (4) age. These criteria that were chosen because the genesis of the landscape largely determines its (scale of) morphology and
lithology that in turn determine hydrological conditions. All together, they define the natural boundary conditions for anthropogenic use. All units have been defined, mapped and described based on these criteria. This enables the link with the European LANMAP2 GIS. The unit “Till-plateau sand region” for instance runs deep into Germany and even Poland. At the local scale, the boundaries of the national units can be defined and precisely mapped by linking them to the 1:50,000 geomorphological map polygons. Each national unit consists of a typical assemblage of local geomorphological units. So, the newly developed natural physical landscape map layer can be used from
the local to the European scale.
Geomorphological, sedimentological, historical and historical-geographical evidence however, points towards the straight part of the Amstel, now located in Amsterdam, as a drainage canal that was dug in the aftermath of the ‘Great Reclamation’ of the 11th and 12th centuries. During this period, large parts of the wilderness in Utrecht and Holland were cultivated and put to agricultural use.
Prior to the ‘Great Reclamations’, large oligotrophic (Sphagnum) peat bogs drained by small rivers were characteristic of the entire region. All along the straight Amstel canal, Sphagnum peat is found, which is indicative of the area’s former peat bog conditions. The ‘Amstel Canal’ connected two natural meandering watercourses, one at the north and one at the south of the canal. The soil along both watercourses exists of eutrophic peat, which is
indicative of repeated natural flooding. This is a strong indication of the anthropogenous origin of the straight part of the Amstel.
The reason for digging the Amstel canal was not to create better trade links; it was a local component of a solution for major regional drainage problems in the provinces of Utrecht and Holland. These problems arose from the silting up of the Rhine rivermouth around 1100AD. Because of this, the precipitation surplus of the entire region could not be drained to the North Sea by this route anymore. This led to increased flooding and
subsequently to conflicts between the rulers of Holland and Utrecht. In 1165AD, these conflicts reached a point where the Holy Roman Emperor intervened. The ruling of Barbarossa eventually led to a compromise: Utrecht and Holland redirected the entire drainage system of the region from the North Sea to the Zuiderzee in a concerted effort. This operation consisted of the digging of many canals and the construction of several sluice complexes.
This shift from natural to man-made drainage systems was unprecedented at this scale in North-Western Europe.
An unlooked-for consequence of the digging the Amstel canal and many other drainage canals during and after the Great Reclamations was the layout of a network of infrastructure that later enabled the rise of cities in Holland.
The location of Dorestad on a high natural levee along a relatively stable navigable branch of the Rhine in the central Rhine delta was perfect for trade. The high levee gave protection from the annual river floods. Although this branch of the Rhine was fairly stable in the heydays of Dorestad, the meanders near Dorestad slowly migrated.
Excavations at Dorestad show that the harbour works of Dorestad were constantly adapted to this migration, thereby following the meander on which they were located. Ships could reach the port from the sea through at least three navigable Rhine branches: the Lek, the Old Rhine and the Vecht rivers. Dorestad was thus easily accessible and yet far enough from the coast to be safe from storm floods – but was it located at its specific location for these
reasons alone?
We combined existing geomorphological and geological maps with recent nation-wide laser-altimetry (AHN, General Elevation model of the Netherlands’) for a regional palaeogeographical reconstruction of 9th-century active Rhine branches in a GIS. This reconstruction revealed that river connections with the Flemish, French and German hinterland were perfect. Other delta branches ensured safe connections to the Zeeland delta and the open
Flemish coast, all the way to Dover Straight to the south and to the open Frisian coast all the way to present Southern Denmark in the North. The dangerously closed coast of Holland without any safe shelter places for storms could thus be avoided by ships coming in both from the South and from the North.
This interdisciplinary approach not only gave insight in the changing river activity, but also in the reasons why Dorestad could rise to its glory, and the possible reason for its demise as important Rhine branches silted up, while new branches developed into navigable waterways. The demise of Dorestad gave room for later river towns such as Tiel, Dordrecht and the cities along the IJssel.
From Friesland to Limburg, and from Groningen to Zeeland, dozens of towns were built during the Middle Ages, most of them along rivers and main waterways. When the Dutch Republic became a world power in the Dutch Golden Age, large extensions were realized in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Leiden. After a period of economic recession in the 18th century, the industrialisation caused some of these cities to prosper again from 1850 onwards. This not only led to a rapid growth of existing cities, but also to the emergence of new cities. Industrial centres like Tilburg and Hengelo and residential towns like Apeldoorn and Hilversum sprang up along the newly developed railways. Built under state control, new cities like Almere, Emmen and Zoetermeer emerged in the 20th century. In the post-war welfare state motorways, residential areas and industrial estates were laid out over the country at unprecedented speed. The Atlas of Urbanization in the Netherlands provides the first national overview of 1000 years of urban development. Its basis lies in an analysis of the 35 largest cities in the present-day Netherlands. By means of photographs, paintings and newly developed maps the growth and shrinkage of the Dutch cities is shown.
The first layer of this map was the physical environment. While the Netherlands have the luxury to have 1:50.000 soil maps and geomorphological maps which are also aggregated to a higher landscape level, the surrounding countries do not always have such an instrument. So we had to make a new map, based on existing digital maps. This was done by expert judgement to attune existing maps to one another. Existing polygons of the digital maps were joined by reclassifying them at a higher scale level. This led to new aggregations of physical geographical landscape-units for the entire region, including the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, northern France and north-western Germany.
For this European scale the Alterra LANMAP2 mapping was used as a basis. LANMAP2 had as an added bonus that this map also has information on land use and climate. This way a multi-disciplinary approach was possible. More landscape characterization issues could be added to this map.
The Cultural Heritage Agency is now working on developing a Landscape Characterization Framework GIS and an Landscape Archaeological GIS based on this north western European base map. This allows us to not only use landscape (archaeological) features on a national scale, but also to compare and cooperate with our direct neighbours in Europe… Moreover, the multi-disciplinary database behind this map also allows palaeo-geographic and palaeo-botanic reconstructions not restricted by modern national borders to be developed.
This poster presentation will give a few preliminary results of this new landscape maps.
Because national spatial policies are more and more related to international developments, the agency was asked to make a map of the dierent Dutch landscapes in a north-western European perspective.
The first layer of this map was the physical environment. While the Netherlands have the luxury to have 1:50.000 soil maps and geomorphological maps which are also aggregated to a higher landscape level, the surrounding countries do not always have such an instrument.
So we had to make a new map, based on new and existing digital maps. This was done by expert judgement to attune existing maps to one another. Existing polygons of the digital maps were joined by reclassifying them at a higher scale level. This led to new aggregations of physical geographical landscape-units for the entire region, including the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, northern France and north-western Germany.
With this new GIS dataset it was possible to extend this map to the historical landscape. Again, the Netherlands have the luxury to have a new palaeo-geographical atlas of the changes of the Dutch physical geography during the Holocene era. Combining these data with the new north-western European landscape GIS gave a rst historical layer on this map.
As a first period for the wider palaeo-geography the Roman era was chosen. For this map not only (palaeo-)geographical data was used, but also climatological data, new archaeological insights and bio-environmental data.
This multi-disciplinary approach makes it possible to map the natural boundary conditions for anthropogenic land use and development. The European scope of the map helps to see the broader historical context.
From Friesland to Limburg, and from Groningen to Zeeland, dozens of towns were built during the Middle Ages, most of them along rivers and main waterways. When the Dutch Republic became a world power in the Dutch Golden Age, large extensions were realized in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Leiden. After a period of economic recession in the 18th century, the industrialisation caused some of these cities to prosper again from 1850 onwards. This not only led to a rapid growth of existing cities, but also to the emergence of new cities. Industrial centres like Tilburg and Hengelo and residential towns like Apeldoorn and Hilversum sprang up along the newly developed railways. Built under state control new cities emerged in the 20th century, like Almere, Emmen and Zoetermeer. The post-war welfare state meant that motorways, residential areas and industrial estates were rolled out at high speed over the country.
The study of urban history is fragmented in different disciplines and local in character. The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands and the Delft Faculty of Architecture have created an overview on the basis of scattered research. This atlas provides an overview of a millennium of urban development for the first time. By means of photographs, paintings and newly developed maps the growth and shrinkage of the Dutch cities is shown. Current topics are discussed, like re-use, redevelopment and the transformations of inner cities and urban fringes. This is the first national long-term overview of urbanization and urban practice in Europe. In our presentation, we will highlight the emergence and development of the urban pattern and the morphology of the Dutch cityscape in the period from the Middle Ages and the early modern period.
Maar er is meer te vertellen over dit gebied. De grote Zuiderzee is namelijk nog helemaal niet zo oud.
De nederzetting groeide uit tot een stedelijk handelscentrum met uitgebreide havenwerken en opslagplaatsen, maar ook met werkplaatsen voor allerhande lokale productie. Daarnaast bleven er agrarische erven en boerderijen.
De vroege Middeleeuwen waren een tijd waarin de rivieren in Nederland grote veranderingen ondergingen. De hoofdwaterafvoer van de Rijn verlegde zich langzaam naar het zuiden, naar de Waal, nieuwe rivieren als de Lek, de Hollandse IJssel en later de IJssel vormden zich en trokken meer en meer water uit de oude hoofdtak van de Rijn. Uiteindelijk begon de Rijn bij Katwijk zelfs sterk te verzanden. Daarnaast kenmerkte de periode zich ook door enkele zeer grote overstromingen. De combinatie van deze verwoestende natuurrampen en het verdwijnen van de Rijn als belangrijke handels- en vaarroute leidden uiteindelijk tot het ophouden van Dorestad als handelscentrum.
Deze lezing geeft en overzicht van de groei, bloei en het uiteindelijke einde van Dorestad, waarbij de nieuwste inzichten in rivierdynamiek en geomorfogenese zijn meegenomen.
De ruimtelijke dynamiek van stadsrandzones
In mei 2014 verscheen de Atlas van de verstedelijking in Nederland. 1000 jaar ruimtelijke ontwikkeling. Dit boek is het eindproduct van een langjarig onderzoeksproject van de Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed en de Technische Universiteit Delft. Het bevat een overzicht van duizend jaar stedenbouw in Nederland. De aard en de inrichting van stadsrandzones is een van de onderwerpen in de atlas.
In het traditionele beeld is het karakter van de stadsrand sterk veranderd: middeleeuwse en vroegmoderne steden zouden een strakke begrenzing hebben gehad, waarbij het contrast tussen stad en platteland zeer sterk was. Na de sloop van de stedelijke fortificaties in de 19de eeuw brak een periode aan van ongebreidelde stedelijke groei, waarbij de grens tussen stad en platteland vervaagde en steden zich als een olievlek uitspreidden over het landschap. Toen kwam de planning op, die een einde maakte aan de ordeloze ontwikkeling van stadsranden.
Dit beeld is gecreëerd onder invloed van de moderne stedenbouwkunde, waarbinnen het idee leefde dat het contrast tussen het stedelijke en rurale landschap moest worden verscherpt – en dat deze overgang maakbaar was. Men dacht te kunnen ontsnappen aan de logica waarin stad, periferie en platteland in elkaar overlopen. De stadsrand werd nu een ontwerpprobleem.
In onze bijdrage zullen wij kanttekeningen plaatsen bij dit idee. Uit recent onderzoek blijkt dat er ondanks de geplande grens rond historische steden een graduele overgangszone was tussen stad en platteland: de stedelijke periferie, waarin kleinschalige, op de stad gerichte functies hun plaats konden vinden, ook omdat de bereikbaarheid goed was, grondprijzen lager waren dan in de steden en stedelijke regelgeving minder streng of niet werd nageleefd en gehandhaafd, voorzover die überhaupt geldig was. In dit beeld is de periferie een broedplaats voor economische vitaliteit. Daarbij worden functies die in de steden niet te handhaven waren (zoals vervuilende en brandgevaarlijke bedrijvigheid of de behandeling van lijders aan besmettelijke ziekten) gecombineerd met functies die typisch waren voor de periferie, zoals tuinbouw of infrastructuur. De overloop uit de stad werd gecombineerd met een stedelijk platteland.
In onze bijdrage zullen we aan de hand van de onderzoeksresultaten uit de Atlas van de verstedelijking laten zien dat de continuïteit in de ontwikkeling van stadsranden groter is dan gedacht, omdat de ontwikkeling van de periferie inherent is aan die van de stad en omdat de mechanismen en functies die de ruimtelijke dynamiek ervan bepalen niet wezenlijk zijn veranderd.
1 Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed, Amersfoort.
In this lecture we will give an example of a method developed at the Cultural Heritage Agency in the Netherlands of integrating historical city maps with modern cartographic techniques. As a main research area, we will focus on the city of Amsterdam within its seventeenth-century borders. We have developed a specific GIS with which the growth and development of the city over time can be visualized and combined with external (archival) data.
These maps not only give an insight on Dorestads direct surroundings, but also on the reason why Dorestad could flourish as a European emporium. The location of Dorestad on a high natural levee along a not so active branch of the Rhine in the central Rhine delta was perfect for trade. It was far enough from the coast to be safe from storm floods. The high levee also gave protection from the annual river floods. River connections with the Flemish, French and German hinterland were perfect. Other delta branches ensured safe connections to the Zeeland delta and the open Flemish coast all the way to Dover Straight to the south and to the open Frisian coast all the way to present Southern Denmark in the North. The dangerously closed coast of Holland without any safe shelter places for storms could thus be avoided by ships coming in both from the South and from the North.
Later changes in the river system also lead to the demise of Dorestad as an central emporium. The silting-up of the Rhine river to the west and the opening of the IJssel river in the east, made that the city lost its prime economic function.
Maar de Waddenzee is ook door mensen gebruikt. En dat laat sporen na. Sporen van waaruit je zelfs grote gebeurtenissen uit de wereldgeschiedenis kan aflezen. De Amerikaanse revolutie, de opkomst van Napoleon, allemaal terug te vinden in he verhaal van de Waddenzee. De Waddenzee is niet alleen door mensen gebruikt, maar ook gevormd. Het is ook een dynamisch Cultuur Landschap.
Om dit culturele aspect te beschermen, en moeten we weten waar we wat kunnen verwachten. Binnen de dijken kennen we verschillende soorten verwachtings- en waarderingskaarten. Maar waar kunnen we erfgoed verwachten buiten de dijken? Dat landschap is zo dynamisch. Daar is niet Eén Kaart van te maken.
Binnen de RCE is nu een systematiek ontwikkeld die de dynamiek van dit zeelandschap recht doet, en een nieuwe manier van zoeken naar mogelijk erfgoed.
In an internationally oriented city as Amsterdam, just freed from Spanish rule, people started to reinvent their lives. Not only were they looking at Italian, classical examples for to build their new society and urban environment, the most striking was the change in manners.
Although the Dutch protestant mores were of simplicity and austerity, the Amsterdam merchant elite were living a life of luxury. We know for instance from the Amsterdam’s archives that Petronian banquets were taking place, which led to the general prohibition such feasts in Amsterdam. The ideas of how to live the life didn’t come from these parts: they were imported from Italy. Antwerp and Amsterdam book printers translated and published many Italian renaissance works. These were not only works on politics and warfare, but also on cookery and table manners. Several Italian renaissance cooks became famous through translations of their work.
The result of this is best visible in the way Amsterdam merchants ate, and how it differed from their fellow countrymen. In this paper I like to give some examples of how Italian renaissance became a part of Amsterdam culture and (table)manners.
We developed a network-friction model (NFM) which combines data on past environments with archaeological data in order to model historical-route networks. Network friction is the variable that determines potential regional accessibility based on the comparison of local and surrounding landscape factors (Van Lanen et al. submitted).