Beurs van Berlage

Renovations in the Effectenbeurszaal

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Beurs van Berlage

The Beurs van Berlage is a hotspot that cannot be missed during your visit to Amsterdam. It is the vibrant meeting point in the heart of the city. One thing is certain, there is always something to do in the unique historical building! Have a bite to eat in one of our restaurants, visit the Tony's Chocolonely shop for the tastiest chocolate, order the most delicious fish dishes in The Seafood Bar, rent a bicycle or use one of the lockers in the Bike Rental and discover the secrets of Sherlocked. Check out events and the expositions in our calendar.

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It's summertime in Amsterdam. Even though this means that there are less events taking place in the Beurs, the amount of construction work dramatically increases.

Blog The Effectenbeurszaal

16 July 2019

 The Effectenbeurszaal is one of the three larger rooms on the ground floor of the Beurs van Berlage. The room is located on the north side of the building, and is next to the Graanbeurszaal. Although it is not the largest room in the Beurs van Berlage, the dimensions are still impressive. The room has a total surface of ​​700 square meters. This allows the room to accommodate up to 800 people during events.

architecture
The architect of the Beurs, H.P. Berlage, found a major personal challenge with this assignment. He had to reconcile his creative ideas for a design of a merchant's exchange with his own socialist vision. This conflict is most clearly reflected in the design of the Effectenbeurszaal.

A ceramic frieze can be seen on the walls of the room. This is, just like the frieze in the Graanbeurszaal, made by artist Jan Toorop. Toorop and Berlage, both socialists, see traders as profiters. Different forms of work are shown on the frieze. However, securities trading cannot be found on it.

The architecture of the room is comparable to that of the other rooms. The walls of the hall are constructed with bricks. On the north side you can see different arches that shield the room from the original meeting room of the management of the stockbroker organisation. The curtains that are installed on the walls were added to the room later to improve the acoustics.

function
The Beurs van Berlage opened its doors in 1903. As the name suggests, the Effectenbeurszaal became the place where shares and bonds changed ownership. However, the traders were not satisfied with their new workplace since the opening of the new trade building. As a result, the stock traders already left the Beurs van Berlage nine years later. However, they did not go far. They moved to Beursplein 5, where their office is still located.

In the years that followed, the Stock Exchange Room fulfilled numerous roles. Immediately after the stock traders left, it became a currency exchange and a giro office. After that, the hall was given a completely different function, namely that of the concert hall of the Dutch Philarmonic Orchestra. For this, the aforementioned curtains were placed on the walls to improve the acoustics. This is nowadays still a very useful addition to the room for the function it fulfils today; that of a unique event room.

renovations
Fewer events take place in the Beurs van Berlage during the summer months. This makes it the perfect period for renovations. Since the building is already 115 years old, there are always parts of the building that need some extra attention. In the summer of 2019, several activities will take place in the Effectenbeurszaal. Work lighting is placed in the roof of the room, the curtains on the walls are replaced, the acoustic panel is renewed, the floors are sanded and repainted, and various parts of the room as well. In other words: the Effectenbeurszaal gets a real makeover! Are you curious about the progress? Then keep an eye on our social media channels this summer, and those of our projectmanager Dev_ real estate, and register on this page for our newsletter!

Would you like more information about the Beurs van Berlage? Then contact us.