The Montelbaanstoren is a tower on the bank of the Oudeschans, a canal in Amsterdam. It was built in 1516 as part of the walls of Amsterdam, to defend the city and its harbor. The top half of the tower was designed by Hendrick de Keyser, and the tower was extended to its current decorative form in 1606.
It is 48 meters tall and stands beside the water. The 3rd Duke of Alba proposed to incorporate it into a castle, the Monte Albano, which was never built. The name Monte Albano was later garbled into "Montelbaanstoren."
The tower is one of the sights along the old canals of the city, and it shows how a defensive tower could be given a more decorative top when its military use declined.
Comments