Kantoorgebouw

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

OFFICE BUILDING of the former rear factory for dairy products N.V. Hollandia, built on the Oosthavenkade in an Eclectic style inspired by Neo-Dutch Renaissance, designed by architect Pleun van der Berg. The office was constructed in two phases. The right half was realised in 1897. In 1912 the building was extended in the same style with the current left and centre sections.

NB: The factory situated on the rear grounds, belonging to the building, was demolished in the mid-1970s. The building has had a public function since 1977. The original interior has largely disappeared partly as a result of a fire in 1976.

Description

The monumental office building, erected above a high rusticated natural stone plinth on a rectangular floor plan, comprises two storeys and an attic storey under a composite gabled roof with gabled dormers covered with pantiles. The building is cellared, lit just above ground level by windows in the window axes and protected by iron guards. The facades are constructed in red brick in English bond with natural stone corner and closing stones and decorative bands. Above the window lintels are round arches and segmental arches of red facing brick and decorative, white plastered, springing and closing stones. Decorative brickwork is incorporated in the spandrels. Windows and doors are of wood and all provided with arched roller shutters with corner and closing stones. Around the roof is a profiled cornice with gutter. Due to the location on the inner slope of the quay along the Oude Haven, the rear facade is higher than the front facade. The front facade has a classical symmetrical arrangement in colossal order with broad risalits on either side of the entrance, marked at the corners by white stuccoed dentil courses and provided with spout gables, and between these, a slightly recessed, broader central risalit provided with a profiled cornice and a wooden gutter. The gabled roof is provided with three small dormer windows with tent roof and crowned with a pinnacle. The main entrance is situated behind a portal framed by natural stone blocks in the middle building volume and is accessible via a broad natural stone staircase. The double panel door is provided with Neo-Renaissance detailing, a decorative wrought-iron door grille and an arched three-part fanlight with coloured leaded glass bearing the founding years 1882 and 1912 and the coat of arms of The Hague. In the rusticated frame, composed of quartz columns, carved archivolt and Composite capitals, the name of the factory 'HOLLANDIA' is inscribed in relief and golden capitals. The corner risalits have on the ground floor two identical composite window arrangements, in accordance with the central risalit. On the first floor all windows are identical: the central risalit has six tall rectangular (sash) windows with fanlights and the corner risalits each have four. Above the outer windows, just below the attic storey of the top gables, on plastered springing stones, the following instructive texts in red capitals are inscribed "NIL SINE", "MAGNO LABORE" (nothing without great effort) on the left, and on the right "LABOR IMPROBUS" and "OMNIA VINCIT" (persevering labour conquers all). In the facades of the corner risalits are two round-arched windows with fanlights. Both top gables are crowned at the base by shoulder pieces with white stuccoed finials and decorative brickwork in diamond pattern between them. The top gables find their termination between the klauwstukken in a stucco-executed pediment with sculpture between the pilasters and a facade stone bearing 'HOLLANDIA' again in red capitals. The pediment is crowned by a small top gable consisting of two klauwstukken and a wrought-iron weathervane. Behind the top gables are cross-gables with a gabled roof of Flemish facades. The northern side facade from 1912 is richly decorated in accordance with the front facade and consists of four bays, each composed of two coupled windows, separated from each other by a narrow brick pier. The cellar lights are provided with a flat arch. The windows of the ground floor and the upper floor each have a segmental arch with stucco-emphasised springing and closing stones. The pediment is formed in accordance with the central risalit of the front facade. The southern side facade from 1897 is designed more soberly. The windows are provided with a segmental-arched flat arch with small tiles. The pediment is richly executed, identical to the middle section of the front facade. A facade stone inscribed "The foundation stone laid by Dr. Johannes Theodorus Mouton of The Hague, 19 October 1897" is located at the level of the ground floor. The irregular arrangement of the rear facade reflects the various alterations. The facade consists of two spout gables, left and right, and a middle section with flat roof. Only the right spout gable still has a more or less regular original facade articulation. The middle section has centrally a large arched stairwell window with leaded glass. In the interior, of particular importance is the monumental representative hall with staircase around a high void and lit by a dome-shaped fanlight. The staircase has an oak staircase and balustrade, the leaded glass windows are provided with (stained glass) figurative images, created by artist J.W. Gips.

Valuation

Former office building of N.V. Hollandia, dairy products factory, late nineteenth, early twentieth century designed in a rich style inspired by Neo-Dutch Renaissance, of general importance due to architectural and cultural-historical value, as well as of importance due to high visual impact value on the Oosthavenkade.