An ''Amsterdammertje'' () is the typical

red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–750 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a seconda ...

brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing and painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors Orange (colour), orange and black. In the ...

steel Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon that demonstrates improved mechanical properties compared to the pure form of iron. Due to steel's high Young's modulus, elastic modulus, Yield (engineering), yield strength, Fracture, fracture strength a ...

traffic bollard that is used to separate the pavement from the

street A street is a public thoroughfare in a city, town or village, typically lined with Building, buildings on one or both sides. Streets often include pavements (sidewalks), pedestrian crossings, and sometimes amenities like Street light, streetligh ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

. ''Amsterdammertje'' is Dutch for 'little one from Amsterdam'. The bollards bear the three

Saint Andrew's Cross In Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Anglican, Oriental Ortho ...

es from the

coat of arms of Amsterdam The coat of arms of Amsterdam is the official coat of arms symbol of the city of Amsterdam. It consists of a red shield and a black pale with three silver Saint Andrew's Crosses, the Imperial Crown of Austria, two golden lions, and the motto ...

. Since the 1980s, the city council has been removing and selling ''Amsterdammertjes''. __TOC__

History

Around 1800, many people in Amsterdam started to use bollards to protect the pavement in front of their houses. These bollards were made of

metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...

(originally old

cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during th ...

s, see also

bollard A bollard is a sturdy, short, vertical post. The term originally referred to a post on a ship or quay used principally for mooring boats. In modern usage, it also refers to posts installed to control road traffic and posts designed to pre ...

s),

stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

, or

wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

. In the late 19th century the first

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content of more than 2% and silicon content around 1–3%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloying elements determine the form in which its car ...

bollards were made. From 1915 onwards there was a standard bollard of cast iron, weighing , with three Saint Andrew's Crosses from the coat of arms of Amsterdam. This bollard already looked like the modern ''Amsterdammertje'', although, amongst other differences, it was thinner and heavier. From 1972 the ''Amsterdammertjes'' were no longer made from expensive and heavy cast iron, but from plates of

, approximately high and weighing only . This type is currently used in the city; all 1915 type bollards have been replaced or removed. In 1984, there were approximately 100,000 ''Amsterdammertjes''. As

truck A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport freight, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construct ...

s ran over the ''Amsterdammertjes'' more and more frequently, cars were able to pass between, and the bollards were no longer effective. In their place, the pavements were elevated slightly in the 2000s. Around two thousand ''Amsterdammertjes'' are being removed every year. In 2003, there were 37,616 ''Amsterdammertjes'' left.

References

{{Amsterdam Culture in Amsterdam History of Amsterdam Transport in Amsterdam Parking by city Street furniture

History

See also

References