1. Oude Kerk

The Oude Kerk is the oldest parish church (and building) in Amsterdam. The stone church was consecrated in 1306 to replace a plain wooden chapel. It was dedicated to Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of children, seafarers, and the city. The stipple was tall enough to serve as a sign to seamen at sea that they were finally approaching home. As the city’s population grew, so did the church, despite fires and financial competition with the Nieuwe Kerk. Timber from Estonia was used for the roof, which is the largest medieval wooden vault in Europe. The guilds funded the construction of numerous chapels along the north and south aisles, while the church was full of marvelous paintings and statues.

The church floor (approximately 3,300 m2) consists of 2500 gravestones containing 10,000 people, including famous admirals, artists, and merchants. Frans Banninck Cocq, the mayor of Amsterdam from 1651 to 1655 and the central figure in Rembrandt's “Night Watch”, lies here. So does Jacob van Heemskerck, a Dutch explorer who discovered Spitsbergen and survived an arctic winter during his search for a northern passage to the fabled spice islands of the East. Rembrandt’s wife, Saskia van Uylenburgh, was buried here in 1642, after dying at the age of 29 from tuberculosis. At the time graves were viewed as ordinary possessions, so Rembrandt sold the grave in 1662 because he needed money.