City Hall Delft - Delft, Region Zuid-Holland, Netherlands
N 52° 00.693 E 004° 21.520
31U E 593247 N 5763194
The city hall of Delft was designed by Dutch architect Hendrick de Kayser in the "Amsterdam Renaissance Style".
Waymark Code: WM16804
Location: Zuid-Holland, Netherlands
Date Posted: 05/29/2022
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The Delft town house is located in the western part of the market square, opposite the new church. The building with a heavy sandstone tower (named 'Het Steen' and used as a prison) was built in the early 14th century, but was destroyed in a fire on March 3, 1618, from which only the tower survived. Architect Hendrick de Keyser, known for his "Amsterdam Renaissance Style", who was working at the time of the fire on the mausoleum in the Nieuwe Kerk for William of Orange designed and built the new town hall between 1619 and 1621.
De Keyser created a very symmetrical building with pilasters and a pediment above the entrance. The statue of Lady Justice in the center niche above the entrance reminds of the use as a court house. The outer building is surrounded by obelisks, ornamental vases, shell motifs and other ornamentals.
After the "Delft Thunderclap", an explosion of nearly 30 tons of gunpowder on October 12th in 1654, that burnt down large parts of the city, the city and also the town hall had to undergo some serious repair, which took until 1662. The entrance area was remodeled again around 1850, but these changes were reversed to the original design of de Keyser around 1963 as part of a larger restoration.
The building is located at Markt 87 in Delft and still in use for the town council, so having a look at the inside is only possible during the "Open Monument Day" (Open Monumentendag) usually on the third weekend in September.
References:
- Stadthuis Delft, erfgoedbekeken.nl, Dutch language
- City Hall (Delft), Wikipedia
- Rijksmonumentenregister, Entry 11901, Dutch language
- City hall, Lens on Leeuwenhook, Dutch language
- Delft, Wikipedia, section Explosion