Please push F11 and make sure you are in "full screen" mode. The “new” church (Nieuwe Kerk) is the National Church of the Netherlands – except it’s not a church anymore but rather a place to stage secular activities – like coronations and royal marriages. (Have the Dutch replaced religious with exhibitionists?) Despite several fires and pillages, the space still contains three large jewels: the organ, the wood pulpit, and the choir screen (for a church that doesn’t have a choir.)
Since Protestants actually listen to their sermons, the pulpit is a big deal. This pulpit is the 1649 masterpiece of sculptor Albert Jansz Vinckenbrinck. Not only is this space not a church, but Nieuwe Kerk is not really all that new. Construction started Catholic in 1408 and the place has been pillaged and burnt several times. Plumbers accidentally burnt the roof off in 1645 and nearly destroyed the entire place. But this gave then-Protestant Amsterdam the chance to put its stamp on the place with massive art works such as this.
A detail of the canopy.
Here’s a detail of Vinckenbrinck’s hexagonal rostrum with a demonstration of Renaissance perspective carved in relief to infinity – from which fully three-dimensional statues emerge. Note the folds (and blindfolds). The reliefs show works of charity and the statues represent the virtues, a Christian mythology without saints. At bottom are the evangelists (Luke pets his symbol, the bull). All this is at eye level to the worshipers. You can worship more of these details yourself on our supplemental slides of the Nieuwe Kerk.
Here’s the massive covering (but without the radiant dove of the Holy Spirit seen over Catholic pulpits.) There’s a definite Gothic feel to the Vinckenbrinck’s canopy hovering over his Renaissance rostrum. In the days before amplifiers, this large hexagon projected the sermon throughout the church.
The pillar also contains reliefs of the Last Judgement (at center) with New Testament scenes on either side.
Detail of the stairway
Another magnificent addition after the near-catastrophic 1645 fire was the main organ, 10 years in the building by several of the major artists of its day. It features the Old Testament king David (who was not just a ruler, but a string player as well – perhaps a worthy predecessor to Bono). Note the hinged doors in the middle story – they swing out to display even further decoration.
Some organ details
Music is a motif, not just because this is an organ, but because it honors the Old Testament king David who started as a court musician.
This may presage a Stones concert.
The stain glass is secular and some of it is abstract...
... but most features realistic depictions of national events as this is the National Cathedral of the Netherlands.
The oldest window shows Count William IV giving Amsterdam its coat of arms in 1342. This was a big event in the life of a city. The shield contains three stacked St. Andrew’s crosses. Most of this is a 1650 work by Jan Gerritsz van Bronckhorst who also painted the shutters on the main organ. In 1977, Harry Op de Laak added the spectators.
Let's now look at the choir screen.
Silversmith Johannes Lutma created this masterpiece of a choir screen. Its made of wood wrapped in brass. At center top, the two lions hold the crest of Amsterdam – a completely secular presentation. Its classical pilasters are threatened by swirling ornamentation suggesting the baroque. The only thing missing is…
…the choir. Choir screens separate the congregation from the main altar which has been replaced by this monument to a war hero. After the 1645 fire, the Dutch decided to keep this space separated for more intimate ceremonies such as weddings. Hence Lutma’s brass screen. This church was once a cemetery for perhaps as many as 10,000 people. The richer you were, the more likely you were to be able to afford a spot here in the choir. Typical graves stacked up four or five coffins. As the floor sank, graves were often emptied – creating a stench. Recent renovations have removed the rest.
These are the coats of arms of the Queen of the Netherlands. As Dutch head of state, she has one for all of the regions once ruled by the House of Orange-Nassau. Do you know the Queen's name?
Since 1980, Beatrix has been the popular monarch. Here's one of a few monuments to fallen warriors.
Above what would be the main altar space is this 1782 memorial to the war hero Wolter Jan Gerritt, Baron Bentinck, the hero of the battle of Dogger Bank that killed him when a cannon ball removed his left shoulder.
We do have at least one grave left. In place of a main altar, we have this 1681 memorial tomb of Michiel de Ruyter who lies dead at the bottom of the sculpture with all of his limbs intact even though his left leg was amputated. His true coffin (with the leg) is in the crypt below.
Let's finish with a few details from this elaborate memorial.
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