Landhuis, Broekhuizerlaan 2

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

Description of component 1: MAIN BUILDING (Broekhuizen).

Neo-classical country house of considerable size with a low basement storey, an piano nobile, a second storey and an attic under a hipped roof with four chimneys. Construction was begun in 1794 by J. Berkman. After his death in 1795, construction was continued by B.W.H. Ziesenis, who extended the building with two wings, both semi-circular side courtyards and a columned portico in the centre of the front facade, as well as the curved staircases at the front. Around 1810 the house was completed; after being gutted by fire in 1906, the house was restored in substantially its original form.

The elongated, relatively shallow house is eleven window bays wide, of which three are in the projecting central pavilions at front and rear, three on either side of these and one at each of the slightly recessed ends in the facades. Against the side facades, at the level of the basement storey, there are semicircular, walled side courtyards, "cours de service", which were later built up; the eastern one was provided after 1906 with a superstructure crowned by a balustrade at the level of the piano nobile.

The lightly plastered facades, terminated by a simple cornice with attic, show at the level of the basement storey a pattern of rustication, above which is a ashlar cornice. The central pavilion on the front, covered by a pediment and roof, consists above the basement storey for most of its depth of a portico with four Ionic columns spanning two storeys on high plinths. Curved staircases against the sides of the pavilion lead to the landing of the portico; the cast-iron stair railings differ in their pattern from the original. On the basement storey, after the fire the windows in the pavilion were altered to round-arched arched windows. The central pavilion on the rear, which before the fire had a flat roof and was provided with a decoration in the form of a sundial in carved surround, has since been covered by a roof and pediment like that on the front and also has had, only since the reconstruction, a balcony with cast-iron railing spanning the full width of the pavilion at the level of the piano nobile. The windows filled with glazing bars are all provided with moulded wooden surrounds, those at the piano nobile level being crowned, in deviation from the original state, by moulded ashlar cornices. The pediments of the central pavilions are decorated with coats of arms surrounded by foliate ornament (Broekhuizen on the front and Darthuizen on the rear); at the outer corners and those of the pavilions the attic is crowned by Louis XVI vases.

The INTERIOR was provided at the time of reconstruction with wall-panelling and stuccowork in Louis XVI style. In some cases these were antique pieces purchased at auctions, but most of the wall-panelling, stair balusters and old Dutch fireplaces were made to match. In the salon painted wallpapers were installed with Arcadian subjects, dating from the 18th century. In a large number of rooms there are paintings above the doors and on the chimney breasts. On the second storey, after the fire, two rooms came in old Dutch style, which were taken into use as a billiards room. The main staircase with wooden balustrade in Louis XVI forms rises from the basement storey to the piano nobile and opens onto the hall with figurative stuccowork depicting the four Seasons. In the wing to the right of it a simpler staircase leads to the second storey. The wing at the far right contains the concrete service stair which runs from the basement storey to the attic. All floors are executed in fireproof concrete. The basement storey contained service rooms such as kitchens, storage spaces, work rooms and a pantry. On the piano nobile there are representative rooms such as salons, dining rooms and some guest bedrooms (in the right wing). On the second storey there were mainly bedrooms.

Valuation

The MAIN BUILDING (Broekhuizen) is of general importance:

- on account of its architectural design;

- on account of its floor plan and layout;

- on account of its well-preserved interiors;

- as a representative example of a large-scale classical country house of circa 1800;

- as an exceptional example of an early 20th-century reconstruction of a classical house in the original style;

- on account of its characteristic location within the landscape park;

- on account of its functional-spatial relationship with the other components of the country estate.