Since you liked this post about old Amsterdam so much, I thought of building some more on the subject, this time by introducing you to Jacob Olie`s photography.

Jacob Olie (1834—1905) was a Dutch photographer, known for for his photographs of Amsterdam in the 19th century. He was born, lived and worked in this city.

Photography was nothing more than a hobby for Olie, who earned his living by working as a carpenter and engineer on the Prinseneiland (first photo of this series is a self portrait from this period).

The urbanization of Amsterdam in the 19th century – with all the major changes it brought – represents a recurring theme at Olie. Filling in of canals to turn them into streets, widening of embankments, the construction of the first large department stores and offices – these are all captured by his photographs.

Jacob Olie eventually become an art teacher and director of the first technical school in the Netherlands (last photo of this series).

Take a look at some of his photographs and you will see why his work is so precious in capturing the essence of old Amsterdam!

                               
This entrance on the Prinseneiland remained almost unchanged. See a photograph of it which I took a few weeks ago, here:

Five years after this photo was taken, this place became De Clercqstraat. See Westerkerk in the background: