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The true story behind Amsterdam’s Schreierstoren

Amsterdam Tourist Information • March 16, 2008

Around 1380, the first dyke was built at the outskirts of Amsterdam in order to defend the growing city against what was then the sea.

This dyke is today’s Zeedijk, a lively street on the outskirts of the Red Light District. Once the domain of junkies, the street is now home to fashion shops, bars, and Chinese restaurants.

As the Amsterdam’s trade and harbor grew, a defense wall was built in 1481.

Today the Schreierstoren and De Waag (at Newmarket) are the only structures left from that wall.

Schreierstoren Posted at Flicker.com by Gijlmar

The Schreierstoren overlooked both the sea and the harbor — and has as a result become the subject of a myth:

Tourist guides from around the world (even including many Amsterdam natives — as well as the Amsterdam Bureau of Tourism and Conventions) incorrectly translate the name as Weeper’s Tower.

They explain that the tower got this name because it was the place where the wifes of sailors either said their goodbyes or anxiously waited for their safe return. As proof they point out a gable stone from 1569 showing a crying woman.

However, the story isn’t true.

The sculpted gable stone depicts a virgin (as the city of Amsterdam was often represented) who is sad due to the difficult position the city finds itself in just prior to the 80-year war.

The name of the tower started out as Schrayhouck, which means ‘sharp angle’ — a reference to the sharp angle at which the tower is positioned with regard the O.Z. Kolk canal.

Currently the Schreierstoren houses the VOC café.