Palace on Dam Square with the first monument by Patricia Hofmeester

About "Palace on Dam Square with the first monument"

by Patricia Hofmeester

About the artwork

Old postcard from 1904 showing the Palace on Dam Square with people, trams and horsesThe Palace on Dam Square - in the foreground the National Monument 'De Eendracht', nicknamed Naatje van de Da,

Naatje op de Dam stood on Dam Square in Amsterdam opposite the Dam Palace between 1856 and 1914. It was to be a commemoration of the campaign, but also a symbol of the popular spirit of 1830-1831 and Dutch unity.
On 10 December 1855, the foundation stone was laid and on 27 August 1856, the monument was to be unveiled in the presence of King Willem III by some disabled former soldiers. However, the unveiling occurred prematurely due to a gust of wind.

Soon the nickname Naatje Eendracht, Naatje op de Dam and later Naatje for short, came into being. Where this name came from is not entirely clear. It could be that the text on the statue was misread and NATIE was mistaken for NATJE, which was bastardised to Naatje. This was a common female name, derived from Catharina (Mina), but the word could also refer to the female genitalia. Frost and rain did their work and Naatje lost part of her nose after a few years. Her head was sawed off to restore it and afterwards it was screwed back onto the statue. On 2 May 1907, her right arm broke in the fountain basin. Her arm was not replaced. On 25 July 1913, B&W discussed a proposal to have the statue removed at their meeting. The Dam was rebuilt, the tram tracks on the section of the Dam in front of the Palace were moved, and on 8 April 1914 Naatje was removed.