Monumenten dendrochronologisch gedateerd (5)

The dendrochronological dates have invariably been related to existing historical and art-historical Information on the buildings in question. In some cases the data on this were only discovered later, such as on the castle of Rechteren in Dalfsen, the main building of which had been dated dendrochronologically before, in 1505. This building date now seems to be connected with the enforced removal of the lord of the castle. From dendrochronological dates established in the town of Utrecht it became apparent once again that gouged out counting marks are to be expected there, as well as in South Holland, as early as in the third quarter of the fifteenth century. The taking and preparing of wood samples was invariably executed by the RDMZ in Zeist; other persons and institutions were also involved in measuring the tree-rings and dating them. A number of datings took place at the request of the 'Vereniging Hendrick de Keyser' (Hendrick de Keyser Association), which is to publish the first part of the revised book Het Nederlandse woonhuis van 1300-1800 (The Dutch private house from 1300-1800), written in 1969 by Meischke and Zantkuijl

Toelichting op het thema bouwhistorie

No abstract available[No abstract available

Toelichting op het themanummer kloosters

[No abstract available

Monumenten dendrochronologisch gedateerd (4)

Within a period of about one year the State Service for the Preservation of Monuments has collected 265 wood-samples. About half of these could be dated. To enlarge the chance of dating different samples have been taken per construction- phase. The chance for dating also proved to be dependent of the place the wood was chopped and employed afterwards. Pending restorations well-worn materials often are removed, which spoiled the chance for dendrochronological dating. Information on the working process, marks etc., gets lost as well. Therefore the State Service for the Preservation of Monuments stands up for restorations with preservation of the old material or storage of a representative amount of beams. In the first quarter of the century at the restoration of the Church of St. Lebuïnus at Deventer all present roof coverings of the roman and gothic construction phases have been demolished: important starting points for the building's history are lost. Historically considered the present roof has not been well constructed. Dendrochronology and the history of construction can contribute to the value judgement of a monument. Dendrochronology can sharpen the history of construction and architecture. By the presence of loose fragments of wood the towers of the Church of St. Servatius at Maastricht could be dated. Formerly a wooden roofing of the Church of Our Lady in the same town was reconstructed and dated. A detailed approach of the monument results in a better, more conscious weighing of preservation or demolishment of the present parts

Een timmerman zal tot zijn proeve maken…

Between 1500 and 1800 preparing a masterpiece for carpenters, just as for other crafts, was a requirement in the Netherlands in order to be acknowledged as a free-working apprentice or master. Although this status is not always mentioned explicitly, mastership was exclusively related to the authority to train apprentices and the permission to contract for work. In order to be admitted to the guild, carpenters had to make a cross window, one or more trusses or a staircase. Depending on place and point of time, the assignment could differ considerably. The nature of the masterpiece indicates which pieces or architectural elements were considered a criterion of quality, although the description of the masterpiece was usually concise. In the 18th century oak cross-bar windows were still prescribed everywhere, whereas in practice the pine sash window was generally applied. The truss with wall posts and braces was still prescribed in many towns, but these supports had passed into disuse since the beginning of the 17th century, because the beams were directly supported by the walls. In the course of the 17th century straight flights of stairs and perrons replaced the spiral staircases prescribed by the guilds until well into the 18th century but no longer built in practice. In case of roofs and staircases it increasingly concerned a theoretical test, i.e. a test in draughtsmanship and geometry. The primary assignment of an architect consists in the early combination of drawing a wooden facade and preparing building specifications (Antwerp 1543), a method still functioning up to the present moment. The concept of “architect” is absent in the jargon of the guild system, both among carpenters and among masons. Knowledge of modern building forms and techniques hardly occurred in the examination package of craftsmen. However, since the 17th century there was an increasing emphasis on drawing and calculating, which may explain why a carpenter could develop into an architect under certain circumstances. Consequently, as opposed to the bricklayer/stonemason who in the Middle Ages could be master of the entire work, it has been customary up to this day that a carpenter acts as general foreman, administers the drawings in the site hut and supervises the dimensions. The position of the guilds changed between 1500 and 1800. It is remarkable that until well into the eighteenth century age-old guilds’ privileges were appealed to, while at the same time it was found that the related low fines did not offer the protection desired. It seems that the influence of the guilds was decreasing as the town council increasingly started to represent the interests of governors, administrators and traders, who were more remote from handiwork and practice. In the 18th century conflicts and petitions with respect to the guilds get an abstract, legal character, pushing the contents of the work into the background. In combination with the outdated character of the masterpieces and the ever-increasing admission fees the bankruptcy of the guild system was apparent well before 1795.Between 1500 and 1800 preparing a masterpiece for carpenters, just as for other crafts, was a requirement in the Netherlands in order to be acknowledged as a free-working apprentice or master. Although this status is not always mentioned explicitly, mastership was exclusively related to the authority to train apprentices and the permission to contract for work. In order to be admitted to the guild, carpenters had to make a cross window, one or more trusses or a staircase. Depending on place and point of time, the assignment could differ considerably. The nature of the masterpiece indicates which pieces or architectural elements were considered a criterion of quality, although the description of the masterpiece was usually concise. In the 18th century oak cross-bar windows were still prescribed everywhere, whereas in practice the pine sash window was generally applied. The truss with wall posts and braces was still prescribed in many towns, but these supports had passed into disuse since the beginning of the 17th century, because the beams were directly supported by the walls. In the course of the 17th century straight flights of stairs and perrons replaced the spiral staircases prescribed by the guilds until well into the 18th century but no longer built in practice. In case of roofs and staircases it increasingly concerned a theoretical test, i.e. a test in draughtsmanship and geometry. The primary assignment of an architect consists in the early combination of drawing a wooden facade and preparing building specifications (Antwerp 1543), a method still functioning up to the present moment. The concept of “architect” is absent in the jargon of the guild system, both among carpenters and among masons. Knowledge of modern building forms and techniques hardly occurred in the examination package of craftsmen. However, since the 17th century there was an increasing emphasis on drawing and calculating, which may explain why a carpenter could develop into an architect under certain circumstances. Consequently, as opposed to the bricklayer/stonemason who in the Middle Ages could be master of the entire work, it has been customary up to this day that a carpenter acts as general foreman, administers the drawings in the site hut and supervises the dimensions. The position of the guilds changed between 1500 and 1800. It is remarkable that until well into the eighteenth century age-old guilds’ privileges were appealed to, while at the same time it was found that the related low fines did not offer the protection desired. It seems that the influence of the guilds was decreasing as the town council increasingly started to represent the interests of governors, administrators and traders, who were more remote from handiwork and practice. In the 18th century conflicts and petitions with respect to the guilds get an abstract, legal character, pushing the contents of the work into the background. In combination with the outdated character of the masterpieces and the ever-increasing admission fees the bankruptcy of the guild system was apparent well before 1795

Bouwhistorisch onderzoek en de restauratiepraktijk

[No abstract available

Ambachtelijk metselwerk

In the middle ages and the subsequent period a range of possibilities existed to give brickwork a special finishing. This was also possible because the 'finishing phase' took considerably longer than became customary more recently through the application of Portland cement. It is remarkable that certain miniscule effects in relation to the surface of medieval brickwork occurred in North and South Europe simultaneously; people knew what was going on in the world, despite the fact that the production of brick was a local affair. In working with brick clamps a direct relation between bricklayer and brickmaker is obvious. Nevertheless this co-operation for special brickwork must have continued up to and including the 18th century, when the brick kilns supplied the bricklayers with various special-dimension bricks. Gauged brickwork, such as that of the masterpieces, reflects the highest ideal of perfectly and precisely executed masonry, which is a smooth and even wall surface, mathematically precise, built in Tudor bond or English bond with the pointing as narrow as possible. This ideal is to be seen in the perfectly built facades of monuments as they were built until the early 19th century. This tradition came to an end by the abolition of the guilds in 1808, which had set the requirement of producing a masterpiece. In the first half of the 19th century, however, carefully executed, 'ordinary' fair-faced brickwork continued to be made. The abolition of the guilds was accompanied by new, more theoretical forms of education during the 19th century. A final break with the past took place with the arrival the machine-manufactured moulded bricks, and particularly with the application of Portland cement, which entailed a completely new way of bricklaying with wider joints. On the one hand in the 20th century a contemporary conception of traditionally made brickwork developed, on the other hand historical pointing during 'restorations' was destroyed on a large scale. The so-called cut pointing is usually applied to camouflage too widely cut joints or brickwork with irregular bricks. It is a 20th-century restoration practice that has little to do with the historical starting point and is therefore undesired in the conservation of monuments and historic buildings

Uit ander hout gesneden: Veranderend houtgebruik in de zestiende en zeventiende eeuw

Long before the large-scale import of Scandinavian softwoods in the seventeenth century, deal floorboards and softwood rafters had already made their appearance before1500 and continued to appear sporadically throughout the sixteenth century, especially in cities situated on or close to the sea. The boards in that period were quite substantial: 30-50 centimetres wide and 2.7 centimetres thick. With the supply of oak via the occupied eastern and southern parts of the country wholly or partially halted during the Eighty Years’ War, alternatives were sought and were found primarily in softwood from Scandinavia. The Twelve Years’ Truce saw an explosive growth in imported softwood, but also a brief and final resurgence in the import of highquality oak from Germany. But even before that time, at the beginning of the Eighty Years’ War, there had been instances of single floor frames constructed in softwood.In the South, the River Maas had always been an important supply route for oak. After the Eighty Years’ War trade between the Netherlands and Germany via the Rhine resumed, while timber supplies from Norway were hampered by competition from England. This no doubt boosted the supply of softwood from the basins of the large northern rivers and the Baltic. Throughout the seventeenth century oak continued to be used for special features such as interior woodwork and frames, but over the course of the eighteenth century softwood became the most widely used construction timber

De oudste kerken van Utrecht. Een inleiding van de redactie bij het themanummer over het Domplein

[No abstract available

Boetepredikers en de IHS-rage op gebouwen

Since the middle of the fifteenth century the name of Jesus is increasingly found on buildings and other objects. This pious custom was encouraged by the Observants, in this case the preachers of the Franciscan monastic order and was later taken over by the Jesuits. The initiative was taken by Bernardinus of Siena (1380-1444), who was canonized in 1450. After his sermon the letters IHS were applied to the town hall of Siena in 1425, where they are still to be seen. The application of the name of Jesus to the town halls of Deventer and Zwolle in 1458 and 1455 respectively was related to the fact that the magistrate heard the sermons of the priest Jan Brugman, a member of the same monastic order and propagator of the ideas of Bernardinus in the north of the Netherlands. Penitential preachers encouraged public burning of sinful and vain objects, tried to bring about peace and forgiveness, among other things by abolishing party blazon in order to make room for the name of Jesus. Besides a series of examples in Italy we know the IHS-monogram of a house in Kampen, the monastery in Ter Apel and especially a lot of houses in the town of Munster, frequently also in connection with abbreviations of the names of Maria and John. The name of Jesus furthermore occurs on chairs, clocks, mantelpieces, ceramics, written contracts, stained glass windows and other items of everyday use. Buildings at the background of the scenes in remembrance of the sermons of penitential preachers (Siena, Bamberg) are accurately represented. This was the visible outside world, whereas religious themes were often situated in the houses, or likewise souls, of the just as realistically portrayed commissioners, a place where ‘... onse lieve gheminde Heer tot ons ende van ons sal segghen: dit sal myn ruste wesen in ewicheyt der ewicheyt’ (our dear beloved Lord until our end will say of us: this will be my peace in eternity of eternity). Medieval man was concerned about the active presence of Jesus in daily life. This was also expressed in applying the IHS-monogram ‘... opdat hy sijn wapen sye in onser woeninghe; want overmids die wapen pleghet men te kennen der heren woeninghen’ (that he may see his blazon in our dwellings; for by this blazon one will recognize the dwellings of the Lord)