Vleeshal
Encyclopedia
Haarlem
Haarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...
, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
.
History
Vleeshal means meat-hall; it was the only place in Haarlem where fresh meat was allowed to be sold from 1604 to the 18th century. The ox-heads on the front of the building indicate the function of the hall. The building was used for selling fresh meat, salted meat was sold in the Warmoesstraat, the street next to the building.It was designed in renaissance style by Lieven de Key
Lieven de Key
Lieven de Key was a famous Dutch renaissance architect in the Netherlands, mostly known today for his works in Haarlem.-Biography:...
. It was built from 1602 to 1603. Before that there was already a small Vleeshal on the crossing of the Spekstraat and the Warmoesstraat, but around 1600 it had become too small, and the meat had to be sold outside. The new building was a prestigious project; expensive materials and a beautiful design were used. It opened on November 1st, 1604. There was place for 40 different meat merchants in the building.
The building has been in use as meat-hall until 1840. Afterwards it was used by the National Archive (Rijksarchief) and the Haarlem public library.
Two Museums
Since 1950 the building is in use as a gallery by the Frans Hals MuseumFrans Hals Museum
The Frans Hals Museum is a hofje and municipal museum in Haarlem, Netherlands. The museum was founded in 1862 in the newly renovated former cloister located in the back of the Haarlem city hall known as the Prinsenhof...
, which holds art exhibitions there under the name "Museum De Hallen
Museum De Hallen, Haarlem
Museum De Hallen is the name of the exhibition space on the Grote Markt, Haarlem, the Netherlands, where modern and contemporary art is on display in alternating presentations. The emphasis is on contemporary photograph and video presentations, with the focus on Man and society...
". The entrance to that museum is through the house directly to the right of the building. The cellar of the Vleeshal is used by the Archeologisch Museum Haarlem
Archeologisch Museum Haarlem
The Archeologisch Museum Haarlem is a museum in the cellar of the Vleeshal on the Grote Markt in Haarlem, the Netherlands, dedicated to promoting interest and conserving the archeological heritage of Kennemerland.-History:...
, which has a permanent exhibition on various aspects of the archeology of Haarlem, as well as a modest exhibition area for new finds. The entrance to that museum is through the small door on the left leading down into the cellar.
Replicas
West End Collegiate Church
The West End Collegiate Church is a church on West End Avenue at 77th Street on Manhattan's Upper West Side. It is part of The Collegiate Reformed Protestant Dutch Church in the City of New York, the oldest Protestant church with a continuing organization in America...
on West End Avenue
West End Avenue
West End Avenue is a north-south thoroughfare on the West Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City, not far from the Hudson River.West End Avenue originates at West 59th Street; the continuation of the street below 59th Street is called Eleventh Avenue. It runs from 59th Street to its...
in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, New Amsterdam is modeled on the Vleeshal.