The monument on the Afsluitdijk is a fixed value on the route between Friesland and Noord-Holland. At the historic place stopped, before the restoration began, daily coaches full of tourists who wanted to look at the miracle of the dike up close. They made way for specialists who started a accurate job that would cause the necessary surprises.
“I think it is really an honor that I can work on this,” says Olaf Oudewaal, restoration expert, who guides the work for Rijkswaterstaat as a architectural supervisor. “It has almost become a architectural search. That makes the work so incredibly beautiful. Investigating why a certain way of working has been chosen.”
Old techniques
The makeover is desperately needed to keep the monument for future generations. Outdated techniques from the 1930s caused considerable surprises. “The large windows have brass corner profiles. They are attached with wooden dolls, plugs that were hit in the wall. But there is water in and that has affected the armament in the concrete,” explains Oudewaal.
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