I went to Amsterdam wanting to see some of its historic buildings. I love old churches so the Nieuwe Kerk (New Church) was high on my list. I was very disappointed by my visit as the church fabric was mostly covered up by an exibition. Read on...
HISTORY:
Despite being called the 'New' Church, the church was actually built in the 15th century (although it has been extensively rebuilt due to fire). The building is mainly Gothic. From the early 19th century the Nieuwe Kerk began to overtake the Oude Kerk (Old Church) for prestige. Since then all of the monarchs of the Netherlands have been inaugurated in the church and royal weddings have also taken place there.
ACCESS:
The church is located right in the heart of Amsterdam on Dam square. It is a short walk (10 minutes) from central station and can also be reached by many of the tram routes (1,2,5,14 and more).
The cost depends on the exibition which is being held at the time. When I visited the exibition was on Indonesia and the cost was 10 Euro. However, if you have the I Amsterdam Card, the Nieuwe Kerk is included on this and it is well worth investing in if you plan to do a bit of sightseeing. If you fancy a guided tour then cash in some bonds before you go - its 90 Euros for up to 15 people but seems to be the same price even if its just you! It also has to be booked in advance.
The website claims that all areas of the galleries and facilities are fully accessible for disabled people. I beg to differ. The information about the church itself is on a kind of mezzanine floor, accessed through stairs in the shop, with no lift up to it. The rest of the building is accessible.
THE VISIT:
Perhaps I should have consulted the guidebook more carefully or studied the website better before I left, but I assumed that I would be able to see some of the church inside. I now realise this was a mistake on my part. The website clearly states that the church is used as an exibition location and that that's why people go there. However, I was very disappointed. Don't get me wrong, I like exibitions, but I feel that they belong in museums. This is a church, and yet it has no seats, no altar to look at, it just didn't seem right to me.
The exibition itself was very interesting, if you went there to see it. It was filled with beautiful objects from Indonesia and they were amazing. The exibitions seem to rotate fairly frequently so I advise checking the website before you leave.
I really couldn't see much of the church itself. The organ was beautiful, highly decorated and didn't look like an organ at all. My favourite thing was the pulpit. This is a huge structure, carved from wood, with a big wooden canopy over it. There was also a choir screen which was very beautiful.
Most of the graves and tombs were covered by the exibition. Some of the stained glass was covered. The church shop had been completely given over to the exibition. Inside the shop there are some stairs which lead up to a small platform which has a couple of computers and some panels which give you some information about the church. This was really the only interesting part for me.
VERDICT:
Overall I was very disappointed with the church. Had I not had the I Amsterdam Card I probably wouldn't have gone in because for me it just wouldn't have been worth the 10 Euro price. If you are interested in churches, go to the Oude Kerk or St Nicholas' Church near the station. If you like art and want to check out exibitions in Amsterdam, this may be the place for you.
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