Fog in dark Amsterdam - part 3: A'DAM Tower by Jeroen de Jongh Photography

About "Fog in dark Amsterdam - part 3: A'DAM Tower"

by Jeroen de Jongh Photography

About the artwork

The IJ is a river, formerly an estuary, in North Holland. The actual IJ or Binnen-IJ separates the Amsterdam city centre from Amsterdam North, and was originally an offshoot of the Zuiderzee. The name IJ is related to the (West-)Frisian Ae, Ee or Die. This means 'water'.

There are several theories about the origin of the IJ. Possibly the IJ started as a creek, as a result of a breach in the dunes near Castricum. More likely, the IJ is a remnant of a northern arm of the Rhine delta. Finally, the IJ could also have originated from the neighbouring city of Almere. Whatever the case, during Roman times the Oer-IJ formed the connection between Almere and the Utrecht Vecht on the one hand, and the North Sea on the other. The connection to the North Sea later disappeared, while in the Middle Ages the IJ became increasingly wider. This was related to the creation of the Zuiderzee, itself the result of a number of storm surges (such as the Allerheiligen flood).

In the Middle Ages, dikes were built along the IJ: on the south side of the Amstel in eastern direction the Sint Antoniesdijk (later replaced by the Hoogte Kadijk), the Zeeburgerdijk and the Diemerzeedijk. To the west are the Haarlemmerdijk and Spaarndammerdijk. On the north side lies the Noorder IJdijk. At the end of the Middle Ages, dike villages arose along this dike, from east to west: Durgerdam, Schellingwoude, Nieuwendam, and Buiksloot.