Zoeken naar een passend gebouw: een reconstructie van de stedelijke inpassing van het Amsterdamse stadhuis op basis van de vroedschapsresoluties, 1639-1648

The position of the Amsterdam town hall (now royal palace) has puzzled many designers and historians. A careful reconstruction of historical documents puts the process leading to the placement of the building in a new light.

Visitors to the Amsterdam Dam square are often struck by the contrast between the fine-grained urban pattern and the enormous, classicist town hall sitting at a curious angle in its centre. Whereas the architectural logic of the building follows familiar renaissance principles, the setting of the building in its urban environment apparently does not show any concern for classicist clarity. Earlier studies have not been able to explain this discrepancy. In this article, an alternative reading of the site is offered, based on a careful analysis of the municipal resolutions issued in the planning process. This shows that the Amsterdam city council was fully aware of the composition of the urban space around the building, if it hadn’t been for the last minute decision to widen the building envelope.