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Amsterdam Canal District Named UNESCO World Heritage Site
NEW YORK, NY August 4, 2010 � The Amsterdam canal district has been
added to the prestigious United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Heritage List! The decision was announced
at the 34th Session of the World Heritage Committee in Brazil, making
the canal district the 9th World Heritage Site in The Netherlands. The
canal district is regarded as an international icon of urban planning
and architecture.
According to UNESCO, who awarded the title of World Heritage Site to the
17th century canal ring area inside the Singelgracht, "the historical
and urban ensemble of the Amsterdam canal district was a project for a
new 'port city' built at the end of the 16th and beginning of the 17th
centuries. It comprises a network of canals to the west and south of the
historic old town and the medieval port that encircles the old town; the
district was accompanied by the repositioning inland of the city's
fortified boundaries, the Singelgracht. This was a long-term process
that involved extending the city by draining the swampland, using a
system of canals in concentric arcs and filling in the intermediate
spaces. These spaces allowed the development of a homogeneous urban area
including gabled houses and numerous monuments. This urban extension was
the largest and most homogeneous of its time. As a model of large-scale
town planning, it served as a reference throughout the world until the
19th century."
Amsterdam's 17th century canal district is a remnant of the Dutch Golden
Age, a time when the city led the world in art, trade and architecture.
The zone is composed of four curved canals that run parallel to each
other and encircle the Amsterdam city center in a half moon - the Singel,
the Herengracht, the Keizersgracht and the Prinsengracht. The bank of
the outermost Prinsengracht canal is home to the world-famous Anne Frank
House.
According to the Amsterdam Tourism & Convention Board, 38% of tourists
visit Amsterdam for its culture, history, the city center and the
canals. 26% make the journey to experience the general atmosphere --
referred to as 'gezelligheid' by natives -- and 24% of tourists are
drawn to the city because of its world-renowned museums such as the
Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum.
The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam currently has an exhibition on view until
September 6, 2010 about the canal district featuring paintings, prints
and drawings showing the spectacular development of 17th century
Amsterdam entitled: 'Amsterdam's Canal Belt: The Expansion of Amsterdam
in the Golden Age.' A number of maps from the Rijksmuseum's own
collection charting the expansion of the city will also be on display.
Central to the exhibition are six views by Gerrit Berckheyde depicting
the Gouden Bocht (Golden Bend) on the Herengracht Canal which was the
richest part of the new city.
www.rijksmuseum.nl
The Netherlands now boasts nine UNESCO-listed heritage sites, including
an 18th century collection of windmills in Kinderdijk, about 1½ hours
south of Amsterdam. For further details, please visit:
www.amsterdam.nl/worldheritage and
www.holland.com
About the Netherlands Board of Tourism and Conventions
The Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions is the leading marketing
organization for the promotion of leisure and business travel to and
within Holland. NBTC has a worldwide network of eleven offices and one
representative office abroad, with its head office in Leidschendam, near
The Hague. For more information, please visit
www.holland.com
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