Kegelbaan, 2e Binnenvestgracht 19

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

Introduction

SKITTLE ALLEY designed by W.C. Mulder from 1897 and put into use in 1898. The skittle alley is located at the building dating from 1932 (arch. B. Buurman), the former Gentlemen's Society Amicitia (later Society Minerva, "In Den Vergulden Turk", 't Schuttershof and In Den Leidschen Salon) and is connected to it by means of a small gate. Originally, the alley belonged to the predecessor of the current building, the Buiten-Sociëteit Amicitia. The skittle alley has its actual location at the 2de Binnenvestgracht and the Noorder Plantsoen, but is addressed at the Steenstraat, on which it is oriented with the recessed, southern gable end.

Due to the use of (pseudo-)timber-framing on the facades and the cantilevered roof trusses, the architectural style of the skittle alley is closely related to that of the Chalet style still in use at the end of the nineteenth century. The building still possesses its original interior and was also as of 1995 still equipped and in use as a skittle alley.

The building forms part of the protected townscape Leiden.

Description

Elongated, rectangular in ground plan, in brick with timber-framing and pseudo-timber-framing, a single-storey building with symmetrical facades beneath a cantilevered, bituminous material-covered gabled roof. Plinth (tuff stone) of fine brick on the street side fitted with rod anchors that support the floor beams of the skittle alley. The heavy lower wooden rule and those above lie between the brick layers and have a structural function. The remaining woodwork lies on the walls and has a primarily decorative function. Both gable ends and the long facade on the street side are blind and fitted with pseudo-timber-framing, with diagonal members in the second register and St Andrew's crosses in the upper register. The timber-framing in the second facade register divides the eastern long facade (street side) into rectangular panels. Below the second rule of these three facades is one layer of bricks with the end-grains laid diagonally in the facade. The upper facade register consists partly of diagonally placed struts (props). The cantilevers of the roof rest on worked struts. The fascia boards are enlivened with wooden diamond heads (imitation rivets). The decorative trusses (hammerbeam construction) at the gable ends are connected to the facade by means of carved struts. The transparent western long facade is likewise fitted with some timber-framing, but is filled for the most part with glass doors, window sections and a series of upper lights running across the entire facade length. Only below the windows and in the facade tops is there brickwork, the uppermost layer of brick below the windows being laid with the end-grains placed diagonally in the facade. All facade openings are fitted with wooden frames with chamfered reveals and worked upper corners. The facade has three entrance risalits with cross gable (central risalit) and strut gables. These are fitted with a cantilevered decorative truss with hammerbeam construction as that at the gable ends. The outer risalits contain a single door beneath a wooden cassette. The wider central risalit is fitted with a double door, likewise beneath a cassette. In the intervening facade sections there are in total six (two times three) double doors (porte brisées), each individual door beneath a three-light fanlight. All doors stand above hard stone thresholds. The southern gable end is connected by means of an intermediate section - with access to a small courtyard behind the buildings - to the Amicitia building. The interior consists of a long, rectangular skittle room with a single skittle alley. The hall space is articulated by means of narrow ribs over the walls and ceiling.

Valuation

The skittle alley is of general interest owing to its cultural-historical value due to its original function and its place in the history of associational life in Leiden. The skittle alley is also of general interest owing to its architectural-historical value due to the architectural style characteristic of its construction period and the unusual construction with (pseudo-)timber-framing. The still intact building furthermore has high rarity value owing to its original function. It is moreover of interest owing to its recognisability and owing to the integrity of interior and exterior.