From the highway you can now see where Drenthe’s world heritage is hidden

Since this week, brown and white area signs have been placed along several roads in Drenthe to indicate to road users that they are approaching Unesco World Heritage. Today the last signs for the Colonies of Benevolence were placed along the A32.

The Wadden Sea, Kinderdijk and the Defense Line of Amsterdam, among others, already preceded the Colonies of Benevolence with such a sign. Such signs must make it clear at a glance what characterizes the area. The special thing about the World Heritage plates of the Colonies of Benevolence is that two different plates have been made.

This was chosen because the characteristics of the various colonies differ considerably. In Veenhuizen the recognizable building of the former shelter (now Prison Museum) catches the eye, in free colonies Frederiksoord and Wilhelminaoord straight avenues with colony houses are recognizable remnants of the social experiment of General Johannes van den Bosch, who wanted underprivileged city dwellers to work as smallholder farmers to their own future.

In July 2021, four colonies were declared World Heritage, in addition to the three Drenthe, it is the Belgian colony of Wortel that will not receive a sign for the time being. However, talks are underway in Belgium to also indicate Wortel better along the roads.

The signs in Drenthe are placed on both sides of the A28 near Assen, a few kilometers before the exit that leads to Veenhuizen. There is also one along the N33. The signs for Frederiksoord and Wilhelminaoord are placed along the A32, before the exits to Frederiksoord. In addition to being a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Drenthe also has such area signs in Drenthe, including Holtingerveld and Dwingelderveld.

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