7 The bathhouse At the Diamantstraat/Smaragdstraat crossing stands a building that used to accommodate public baths (1926). There were separate areas, with separate entrances, for men and women. At the centre of the building were waiting areas ? Walk down Diamantstraat to the Smaragd- straat crossing. The building on your right is a former municipal bathhouse. (7) The Diamantbuurt This is the Diamantbuurt the Diamond Quar ter. The streets in this area are all named after precious stones because of the local diamond industry. Here we see a sudden drastic change in the streets' appearance. This quarter forms part of what is known as the Nieuwe Pijp the New Pijp. The quarter was built in 1922 based on a design by J.C. van Epen. It is an example of what is known as the Amsterdam School of architecture. The city government was actively involved in the urban development plans for the Nieuwe Pijp and the quality of the houses built here. Typical of the Diamantbuurt are the colours of the window frames. The combination of yellow and green is an essential feature of the area's monumental character. Many of the diamond factory labourers lived in this area. Berlage and Plan Zuid In 1905 H.P. Berlage drew his first development plan for this part of Amsterdam: his Plan Zuid. The design inclu- ded a lot of green spaces, water, residences in low- and high-rise buildings and communal facilities. Only part of this plan was ever im- plemented. It is largely thanks to the efforts of the social-democratic alderman for public housing Wibaut that the urban expansion in De Pijp came to consist mainly of affordable, good-quality residences for labourers, and fewer green spaces and low-rise buildings. The second Plan Zuid (1914) was therefore far more basic. De Pijp became a working-class area, and houses for Amsterdam's more wealthy occupants arose on the other side of Boerenwetering. Berlage's Plan Zuid had a decisive influence on the street plan of De Pijp, but virtually no influence whatsoever on the designs of the residences that were ulti- mately built here; they were designed mostly in the tradition of the Amsterdam School. ? Walk on and turn left into Diamant- straat. The first part of this street is characterised by squat houses. (6) The block of squat houses along Diamant straat, Robijnstraat and Lutmastraat that was built in 1891 was commissioned by Gerard Adrianus Heineken, the owner of the brewery and in those days also the manager of the Housing Association. The block was designed by A.L. Gendt, who is best known for his design of Am sterdam's Concertgebouw (Concert Hall). The squat houses were inspired by English cottages. Mr Heineken was able to pur chase the ground for the houses at a low price because in those days it still formed part of the municipality of Nieuwer Amstel. In the heydays of Amsterdam's diamond industry a lot of the factory labourers lived here. Waterbeschaving Waterbeschaving (water civilisation) was the term used by the Dienst der Wasch- en Schoonmaak-, Bad- en Zweminrich- tingen (WSBZ: Service for Washing, Cleaning, Bathing and Swimming Facilities) to express the extent to which the population was aware of the need to take a bath on a regular basis. The water civilisation of the occupants of Amsterdam was measured on the basis of their bathing frequen- cy. Ideal was a bathing frequency of 52, which implied an average of one bath a week on a yearly basis. The WSBZ kept accurate records of people's visits to the bathhouses to check how close they came to the ideal. They found that the ideal was in fact an alarmingly long way off. In 1945 the bathing frequency was five, instead of the ideal of 52, and by the mid-1950s it had risen to only ten. According to the WSBZ's calculations, more than half a million of Amster- dam's population never had a bath in those days! Plan Zuid with De Pijp at the top right (Berlage Ar chives NAi). The bathhouse in Diamantstraat around 1935 and its interior as it was in 1985 (Amsterdam's Town Archives).
7 The bathhouse At the Diamantstraat/Smaragdstraat crossing stands a building that used to accommodate public baths (1926). There were separate areas, with separate entrances, for men and women. At the centre of the building were waiting areas ? Walk down Diamantstraat to the Smaragd- straat crossing. The building on your right is a former municipal bathhouse. (7) The Diamantbuurt This is the Diamantbuurt the Diamond Quar ter. The streets in this area are all named after precious stones because of the local diamond industry. Here we see a sudden drastic change in the streets' appearance. This quarter forms part of what is known as the Nieuwe Pijp the New Pijp. The quarter was built in 1922 based on a design by J.C. van Epen. It is an example of what is known as the Amsterdam School of architecture. The city government was actively involved in the urban development plans for the Nieuwe Pijp and the quality of the houses built here. Typical of the Diamantbuurt are the colours of the window frames. The combination of yellow and green is an essential feature of the area's monumental character. Many of the diamond factory labourers lived in this area. Berlage and Plan Zuid In 1905 H.P. Berlage drew his first development plan for this part of Amsterdam: his Plan Zuid. The design inclu- ded a lot of green spaces, water, residences in low- and high-rise buildings and communal facilities. Only part of this plan was ever im- plemented. It is largely thanks to the efforts of the social-democratic alderman for public housing Wibaut that the urban expansion in De Pijp came to consist mainly of affordable, good-quality residences for labourers, and fewer green spaces and low-rise buildings. The second Plan Zuid (1914) was therefore far more basic. De Pijp became a working-class area, and houses for Amsterdam's more wealthy occupants arose on the other side of Boerenwetering. Berlage's Plan Zuid had a decisive influence on the street plan of De Pijp, but virtually no influence whatsoever on the designs of the residences that were ulti- mately built here; they were designed mostly in the tradition of the Amsterdam School. ? Walk on and turn left into Diamant- straat. The first part of this street is characterised by squat houses. (6) The block of squat houses along Diamant straat, Robijnstraat and Lutmastraat that was built in 1891 was commissioned by Gerard Adrianus Heineken, the owner of the brewery and in those days also the manager of the Housing Association. The block was designed by A.L. Gendt, who is best known for his design of Am sterdam's Concertgebouw (Concert Hall). The squat houses were inspired by English cottages. Mr Heineken was able to pur chase the ground for the houses at a low price because in those days it still formed part of the municipality of Nieuwer Amstel. In the heydays of Amsterdam's diamond industry a lot of the factory labourers lived here. Waterbeschaving Waterbeschaving (water civilisation) was the term used by the Dienst der Wasch- en Schoonmaak-, Bad- en Zweminrich- tingen (WSBZ: Service for Washing, Cleaning, Bathing and Swimming Facilities) to express the extent to which the population was aware of the need to take a bath on a regular basis. The water civilisation of the occupants of Amsterdam was measured on the basis of their bathing frequen- cy. Ideal was a bathing frequency of 52, which implied an average of one bath a week on a yearly basis. The WSBZ kept accurate records of people's visits to the bathhouses to check how close they came to the ideal. They found that the ideal was in fact an alarmingly long way off. In 1945 the bathing frequency was five, instead of the ideal of 52, and by the mid-1950s it had risen to only ten. According to the WSBZ's calculations, more than half a million of Amster- dam's population never had a bath in those days! Plan Zuid with De Pijp at the top right (Berlage Ar chives NAi). The bathhouse in Diamantstraat around 1935 and its interior as it was in 1985 (Amsterdam's Town Archives).