Spout-Gabled Oxen. Sint Pietershal, Oudezijds Voorburgwal 274, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
The Alteration of 1578 must've been a lucky turn of worldly if not religious events for the Butchers' Guild of Amsterdam. That 'Alteration' is the term used to describe the quite sudden transition from Catholicism to Protestantism of the city and its bureaucracy. The Alteration made it possible to turn ecclesiastical properties to public use. in 1583, the Butchers, cramped for space to serve the ever-expanding city, were given the former chapel of St Peter's Almshouse, for their new Great Meat Hall. After two centuries (1779) it had to be renovated, and it lost its purpose around the middle off the nineteenth century.
Except for this marvellously decorated spout gable, the facade today is not very exciting - at least to me. Spout gables ('tuitgevel' in Dutch) were used especially for buildings devoted to merchants and trade. Here this quite wonderful trio of oxen clearly indicates the manner of business of this building's denizens. Of course, their own spouting days are over...
Spout-Gabled Oxen. Sint Pietershal, Oudezijds Voorburgwal 274, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
The Alteration of 1578 must've been a lucky turn of worldly if not religious events for the Butchers' Guild of Amsterdam. That 'Alteration' is the term used to describe the quite sudden transition from Catholicism to Protestantism of the city and its bureaucracy. The Alteration made it possible to turn ecclesiastical properties to public use. in 1583, the Butchers, cramped for space to serve the ever-expanding city, were given the former chapel of St Peter's Almshouse, for their new Great Meat Hall. After two centuries (1779) it had to be renovated, and it lost its purpose around the middle off the nineteenth century.
Except for this marvellously decorated spout gable, the facade today is not very exciting - at least to me. Spout gables ('tuitgevel' in Dutch) were used especially for buildings devoted to merchants and trade. Here this quite wonderful trio of oxen clearly indicates the manner of business of this building's denizens. Of course, their own spouting days are over...