De Elst

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

A prominently sited VILLA with FENCE, called "De Elt" on the east side of the Kloosterstraat, in the bend of the street. The current fittings of this villa date from the period 1915-20. However, the core is older. The villa was built as a farmhouse, judging by the brickwork used and preserved old photographs, probably in the first half of the 19th century. On the cadastral minute plan of c. 1820, however, the farmhouse does not yet appear. An old photograph, taken in the last quarter of the 19th century, shows a substantial farmhouse on a T-shaped floor plan. The front house was symmetrically laid out and had five window bays, with 6-pane sash windows below and 4-pane sash windows on the upper storey, a type that became standard around 1840. In its original layout, the farmhouse "De Elt" bore a strong resemblance to the farmhouse "Het Rolland" at Hogewaldstraat 1-1a in Beuningen. As a special feature, farmhouse "De Elt" had a built-on grape(?)house attached to the front facade on the right side. To the right of the farmhouse stood a detached barn, which also housed the bakehouse.

For a long time the farmhouse was part of the Asdonk complex (factory for apple jelly and beer), located north of the R.K. church. This complex was demolished in the late 1950s in connection with the construction of the Van Heemstraweg. Around 1915-20 (in any case after 1910), the farmhouse "De Elt" itself must have undergone major renovation, resulting in the present villa-like appearance. On a label of the Asdonck complex, the Elt is still depicted in its old form. On this label, however, the still-existing villa Vinckendael is also shown, dating from 1910. The label must therefore have been made after the construction of this villa. At that time "de Elt" itself had not yet been renovated. From a stylistic point of view too, a dating of the renovation around 1915 can be argued. The baroque elements in the fanlights of the windows, the semi-circular fanlight of the window above and the roof shape with large eaves and bell tower are consistent with a building style that was only first applied around 1910 to large villas and in which elements from the baroque architecture of the late 18th century returned. This style was propagated by a German book that dealt with this (German) baroque style of around 1800 (Um 1800) as its subject. This traditional, impressive style (often called Um-1800 style, with the architect Hanrath as an important representative in the Netherlands) caught on with wealthy manufacturers, who then often had this style applied to their villas.

In the earliest Um-1800 villas, the windows often still had traditional divisions. However, the horizontal glazing bars of the windows on the upper storey of "de Elt" are consistent with a fashion that became prevalent around 1915 in the architecture of the Amsterdam School. It is therefore very likely that the renovation of "De Elt" must have taken place somewhere between 1915 and 1920. The large front house was thus renovated around 1915-20 and during this renovation the thatched roof of the front house received substantial eaves and above the entrance a rise in the roof. On the middle of the ridge rose a roof turret in the form of a small bell tower, whose hipped roof was also thatched again. The chimneys on either side on the ridge were crowned with wrought iron ornamental elements. In the thatched roof two semi-circular roof lights.

The windows received new frames and were all fitted with shutters. The old house had only hinged shutters at the windows below. The classical door frame was retained, the door itself was renewed.

The rear house, standing transversely to the front house, was in the past considerably shortened due to the functional change from farmhouse to villa. Around 1944 this section was renovated by architect Leeuwenberg to create a practice room for doctor De Sonnaville. The rear house is covered by a thatched hipped roof.

Description

The front house of the VILLA has a structure consisting of two storeys with a thatched hipped roof, with bent roof planes below with large eaves. On the ridge a wooden roof turret with a thatched hipped roof and on the ridge ends mortared chimneys with zinc ornamental capping. In the front slope two roof dormers with semi-circular small windows with glazing bars in a fan pattern. The roof dormers are also thatched. The entire front house is surrounded by a high sandstone plinth. All window frames also have natural stone sills. The facades are built up in brick in stretcher bond with stretchers above the windows. The facades end with a plastered band in which the stretchers of the upper storey windows are included as "finished work". The five-bay front facade has retained its symmetrical layout during the renovation around 1915. Only the window forms have been changed. On the ground floor window frames with single-pane sash windows with in the corners of the fanlights cut-outs with rocaille elements. This motif recurs in the fanlight of the front door. All fanlights have leaded glass panels. The front door, executed in natural wood, with a panel with shouldered arch is surrounded by pilasters and a lintel on volute-shaped corbels.

On the upper storey the window frames have 6-pane, inward-opening casement windows. The centre window has a semi-circular crown with a radial glazing bar division and rocaille elements in the fanlight. In the side facades the same window forms appear as in the front facade. In front of the front door lies a sandstone stoop. All window frames are fitted with shutters. On the left side there is a conservatory under a thatched hipped roof with an encircling flattened pitch. On the west side the thatched roof is raised. Here are the double garden doors. In the window frame styles etc. of the conservatory there are stylised Jugendstil ornaments.

The rear house is covered by a thatched hipped roof.

The INTERIOR still has fine elements from the renovation period of around 1915, such as wainscotting, chimney mantels, staircase etc. The left front room has a wooden coffered ceiling. The panelled doors possibly still date from before the renovation. The villa is surrounded on the south and west sides by a fine garden with landscape elements. In the bend of the street lies a pond with water ditch and the forecourt is accessible from the street via a mortared small bridge with a fine wrought iron ENTRANCE GATE from the early 20th century.

Appraisal

VILLA "De Elt" on the east side of the Kloosterstraat built in the period 1915-20, with ENTRANCE GATE.

- Of architectural historical value as a still characteristic villa, with influences from the Um 1800 style, grown from a substantial T-farmhouse from the first half of the 19th century with a low attic storey. Particularly notable are the baroque corner fillings of the fanlights of the windows. The house also has various fine components, such as the monumental entrance section, finely shaped roof with large eaves and bell tower and historic interior elements. Through the renovations, the house has an interesting and still easily legible building history. Buildings in this style are not found elsewhere in the municipality, so we can speak of a unique house.

- Of urban planning / siting value as a villa with a very prominent siting at a sharp bend of the Kloosterstraat, which means the house dominates the sight line of the first part of this street, seen from the Van Heemstraweg. Also viewed from other sides, this building together with the cloister dominates the historical image of the place.