Historische aanleg, Keukenhof 1

English translation

The text above is the record as published by the Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed, in Dutch. The English below is a machine translation made by TreeAlive, not by the Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed; it has not been checked by a person. Where the two differ, the original is the record. Report a translation error: privacy@treealive.com

Description

HISTORIC GARDEN AND PARK LAYOUT. The historic garden layout of the Keukenhof has passed through various stylistic periods, of which the landscape style that came into being in phases from the end of the 18th century is still partly intact in structure and partly in detail. The 17th-century geometric garden layout is recalled only by five pollard linden trees on the west side of the castle near the laundry house. Of the French classicist layout from ca. 1725 only the structure of two artificially raised earth ramparts and a hill 'Meer Zicht' remain, which are placed transversely across the house and probably provided space in the 18th century for a collection of garden ornaments; this layout formed part of the Nieuwe Plantagie (part of the northeastern Keukenduin) of the then owner Van Heemskerck. The spatial structure of the country estate can be distinguished in a layout in landscape style in the immediate surroundings of the house in which the farmhouse, rectangular kitchen garden with pleasure house and a folly are situated; an originally medieval hunting forest on the east side; and a coulisse landscape with duck decoy on the south and west side. The main structure of the landscape layout around the house, namely the course of the paths, the solitary tree groups and the pond in the lawn, corresponds in structure largely with the situation on the cadastral map from 1818. This park layout in English landscape style was further developed from the mid-19th century by the brothers J.D. and L.P. Zocher. The Zochers rerouted the public road (Stationsweg) in 1857, which ran close to the house, with a curve around the house. The old route is still easily recognizable from the group of oaks and beeches in avenue planting. In 1861/62 the drive from the Stationsweg was laid with a curve around the house to the main entrance in the west gable in replacement of the formal drive that stood at right angles to the original front facade (north). The Zochers probably made the design for this. The seven beeches at the beginning of the new drive date from the beginning of the layout. In the immediate surroundings of the castle solitary trees, shrub groups and a pond in the lawn are situated. For the plantings much 'Oriental plants', such as rhododendron, Oriental knotweed and Japanese bamboo were used. The extent to which the plantings were already present is not known. What is known is that part was supplied by the baron, which was distributed by the Zochers so that 'it could provide the most pleasing gradation'. From the castle various sight lines run, namely a sight line to the east between the aforementioned earth ramparts terminated by the hill Meer Zicht, a broad sight line in westward direction over the pastures between wooded coulisses terminated by the now demolished farmhouse Sixenburg and two diagonal sight lines towards the Stationsweg. All these vistas are currently still intact. To the northwest of the house lies the walled kitchen garden originally laid out as an English flower garden (see photo magazine Buiten 1914). Of the layout with flower beds separated by gravel only the vine arbour remains, which stands perpendicular to the pleasure house. In the rear part of the garden some beds are now in use as flower and kitchen garden. Between garden wall and forecourt eight linden trees are planted in a circle (kraal). This place is referred to as 'de manege', because it was used for the trotting of horses. The linden trees served as an umbrella. Inseparably connected with the country estate is the 17th-century farmhouse (see component 4). The garden part of this farmhouse consists traditionally of a kitchen and fruit garden. Against the east wall and on the inner court between the projecting wings stand several old mulberry trees, yews and linden trees. A straight beech avenue connects the farmhouse with the coach house adjoining the gardener's residence. The woodland plot lying behind the earth ramparts - oldest forest holding part of the Keukenduin -, is in use as a hunting forest and pleasure ground. The winding, partly still bowl-shaped paths lead through the coppice forest along a single solitary beech. In 1905 Van Lynden laid out a dog cemetery in this forest. Along the dunes runs the Bosweg. This avenue, currently still several beeches in a row, was planted in 1723 by Mr Van Heemskerck (after WWII replanted with pines) and formed with the beech hedge the boundary of the forest. The adjoining 19th-century park forest is not included in the protection. There are still elements of the layout present, such as old avenue remains, but the great coherence of the layout has meanwhile disappeared. Situated slightly outside the park part, but a striking component of the country estate, is the T-shaped pond in which originally the oak timber was laid into the water. Currently the pond is used as a duck decoy. In the park stand two boundary posts, which marked the boundary of the land ownership, with the inscriptions F.B.E (Frans Bernhard Eysingk) and Van de Lyn.

Valuation

HISTORIC GARDEN AND PARK LAYOUT of general importance:

- because of the still present 17th/18th-century formal elements, such as avenue remains, the raised dunes and various sight lines;

- because of the woodland plot forming part of the Keukenduin with 18th-century winding layout in early landscape style;

- because of the layout in landscape style, which was further embellished by the garden architects Zocher in the mid-19th century;

- because of its importance for the history of garden and landscape architecture;

- because of the functional-spatial coherence with the other components of the country estate.