Kinderdijk in 3D
Kinderdijk
Op deze pagina staan door mij gemaakte stereobeelden van het door de UNESCO beschermde Kinderdijk waar nog 19 werkende molens te zien zijn! Dubbel klikken op de foto met de computermuis geeft een beeld van hogere kwaliteit!
Volgens de UNESCO is het Kinderdijk-complex bij Alblasserdam in Zuid-Holland met zijn negentien molens en zijn netwerk van kanalen en dijken een karakteristiek voorbeeld van een uniek en door de mens gevormd landschap. Het is een sterk voorbeeld van eeuwenlange menselijke inventiviteit en vastberadenheid op het terrein van landdrooglegging en -bescherming door ontwikkeling en toepassing van hydraulische techniek sinds de middeleeuwen. Het ingenieuze waterstaatkundig systeem zorgde ervoor dat het gebied blijvend voor landbouw kon worden gebruikt. Sinds de eerste helft van de achttiende eeuw zijn het systeem en het landschap nauwelijks gewijzigd.
Windmills at the World Heritage Site of "Kinderdijk" in The Netherlands (stereo by GJW). The quality of the pictures will be improved by double clicking on them. After doing so they will be downloaded to your computer in the highest quality.
UNESCO World Heritage Site "Kinderdijk". Kinderdijk (south of Rotterdam) is one of the two 'hot spots' for tourists visiting the Netherlands and wanting to see windmills. This is the nicest place with 19 windmills still in working order in a serene typical Dutch, very moist, landscape. The other place is the "Zaanse Schans" (North of Amsterdam) with a couple of working windmills and lots of shops hidden in farmhouses to buy cheese and wooden shoes ( = a real tourist trap, but also very nice to visit!).
Battle against water
Kinderdijk is located 60 miles south of Amsterdam, near the town of Rotterdam. Here nineteen glorious masterpieces, all dating from 1740, compete for the visitors' attention. Kinderdijk is one of the best known sites in Holland and is probably one of the best known examples of the typical Dutch landscape. The contribution made by the Dutch people to the technology of handling water is enormous, and this is admirably demonstrated by the installations in the Kinderdijk area. Hydraulic works to drain the land for agriculture and settlement began in the Middle Ages and have continued uninterruptedly to the present day. The site contains all the relevant elements of this technology - dikes, reservoirs, pumping stations, administrative buildings, and a series of impeccably preserved windmills. Even though the tasks of the mills have been taken over by steam and electric pumps since 1868, the mills are still turning and could do their job in case of an energy crisis. Images of this unique windmill landscape are featured in every photo book on Holland. In 1997, the Kinderdijk mills were placed on UNESCO's World Heritage List.
Kinderdijk windmill in operation.
The Mills
At Kinderdijk, nineteen windmills are lined up in two opposite rows. The round brick windmills on one side drain the Nederwaard. On the opposite side, the octagon windmills keep the Overwaard from being flooded. During the tourist season, from April 1 to October 1, the Nederwaard Mill 2 is open to the public. The mill will give a good impression of how the millers and their families used to live.
Winter morning sun at Kinderdijk.
Spectacular View
On Saturdays, in July and August, the mills are turning and open to the public. Make sure you don't forget to bring your (3D) camera. When these windmills are in operation, it is a breath-taking sight which will take you back 250 years. During the second week of September, the mills are illuminated at night. Visitors from all over the world make it a point to visit Kinderdijk Mills. The view is spectacular and unforgettable!
(source: Dutch Tourism Board)
Morning Glory at Kinderdijk.
To visit Kinderdijk
Planning a visit? For more information on current events go to:
http://www.kinderdijk.nl
All pictures and 3D-executables copyright of Gert-Jan Wolkers and only released for PRIVATE use!
(C) 2006 - All rights reserved