Description of the attraction
St. Nicholas Church, better known as the Old Church (Oude Kerk), is the oldest parish church and the oldest surviving building in Amsterdam. A wooden chapel has existed on this site, probably from the very foundation of the settlement. In 1306, a stone church was already built here. The then Amsterdam is a small fishing village, and it is not surprising that the church was named after St. Nicholas, the patron saint of sailors. However, the village grew rapidly, its population increased, and in 1410 another - New - Church was built, and the Church of St. Nicholas was no longer called the Old Church.
People gathered here not only for prayer. Fishermen dried and repaired nets here, merchants talked about business, and ordinary townspeople came to see each other and exchange the latest news. The church received the nickname "Amsterdam drawing room".
The interior of the church is very modest, because during the Reformation, all icons, decorations and frescoes were destroyed. Only those paintings that were very high under the ceiling survived. Since the 16th century, weddings have been registered here, and the most important part of the city's archives is kept - in an iron-lined chest decorated with the city's coat of arms.
The Church of St. Nicholas has the largest wooden vault in Europe and is considered by some to have the best acoustics. This can be seen by listening to one of the four organs that are installed in the church.
A distinctive feature of the Old Church can be called the figures of ships that adorn the church - this is a reminder that once they prayed here for a successful voyage. The beautiful stained-glass windows were mainly made in the 15th and 16th centuries.
