Page 83 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - The Netherlands

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q Stadhuis– w Waterlooplein figures depicted on the gable
Muziektheater Map 5 B2. v 9, 14. q Waterlooplein. stones of the original building.
Market: Open 9am–5pm Mon–Fri, These are now set into the
Waterlooplein 22. Map 5 B2. v 4, rear wall.
9, 14. q Waterlooplein. Stadhuis: 8:30am–5pm Sat. The church was restored in
Tel 020-6241111. Open 8:30am– The Waterlooplein dates from 1990, its twin wooden towers
4pm Mon–Fri (free concerts Sep–May: 1882, when two canals were painted to look like sandstone.
12:30pm Tue). Muziektheater: Tel 020-
6255455. See Entertainment pp150–51. filled in to create a market It is now used for exhibitions,
7 8 ∑ hetmuziektheater.nl square. The site was originally public meetings and concerts.
known as Vlooyenburg, an
Few buildings in Amsterdam artificial island built in the 17th
caused as much controversy as century to house Jewish settlers.
the new Stadhuis (city hall) and The original market disappeared
Muziektheater (opera house). during World War II when most
Nicknamed the “Stopera” by of the Jewish residents of
protesters, the plan required Amsterdam were transported
the destruction of dozens of east by the Nazis. After the war,
medieval houses, which were a popular flea market grew up
virtually all that remained of in its place, and today the
the original Jewish quarter, northern end of the square still
and the temporary relocation hosts a lively mix of stalls.
of a popular market. This led
to running battles between e Mozes en The central hall in the Grote Synagoge,
squatters and the police. which opened in 1671
The building, completed Aäronkerk r Joods Historisch
in 1988, is a huge confection Waterlooplein 205. Map 5 B2.
of red brick, marble and Tel 020-6221305. v 9, 14. Museum
glass. A mural illustrating the q Waterlooplein. Closed to the Jonas Daniel Meijerplein 2–4.
Normaal Amsterdams Peil is public except for exhibitions. Map 5 B2. Tel 020-5310310. v 9, 14.
shown on the arcade linking 4 Muziektheater. q Waterlooplein.
the two parts of the complex. Designed by Flemish architect Open 11am–5pm daily. Closed 27 Apr,
The complex has the largest T Suys the Elder in 1841, Mozes Jewish New Year, Yom Kippur. & 7
auditorium in the country, en Aäronkerk was built on - 8 on request, incl. for the visually
and it is also home to the the site of a hidden Catholic handicapped. 9 = ∑ jhm.nl
Netherlands’ national opera church. The later church took its
and ballet companies. name from the Old Testament This complex of four
synagogues, built by Ashkenazi
Jews in the 17th and 18th
centuries, opened as a museum
in 1987. The synagogues were
central to Jewish life here, until
the devastation of World War II
left them empty. Restored in the
1980s, they are connected by
internal walkways. Displays of
art and religious artifacts depict
Jewish culture and the history
of Judaism in the Netherlands.
Highlights include the Grote
Synagoge, its hall lined with
galleries; and the Holy Ark
(1791) from Enkhuizen (see
p182), which dominates the
Nieuwe Synagoge and holds
two 18th-century silver Torah
shields and three velvet mantles.
Also not to be missed is the
1734 Haggadah containing
the Passover order of service.
The buildings were renovated
in 2006, when a basement print
room was created, and one of
the synagogues turned into a
Eclectic goods on offer at the Waterlooplein market children’s museum.

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