Maastricht photography

MAASTRICHT AREA

Maastricht - Park Vrijthof and Servaas Basilica Market place and environment
Onze Lieve Vrouweplein and Jekerkwartier Maastricht in winter time Night photography
Maastricht oud en nieuw Around the Maas Maastricht-Wijck
Panoramic views Sint-Pieter Jekerdal
Click on a thumbnail to view the series.

 

This photo gallery is about Maastricht, a very old town of Roman origin (Mosa Trajectum, literally: bridge over the Maas). The center harbours many old monuments from different centuries. Most well-known are the basilicas St. Servaas and Onze-Lieve-Vrouw, the Town Hall and the medieval city walls, of which great parts have survived the numerous wars which have been fought here. Testimonies of these are the fortresses which lay scattered around the town, of which the most imposing is fortress Sint-Pieter. This gallery is about old churches, houses and other buildings of my home town Maastricht. Special attention for the Vrijthof area with its imposing St. Servaas Basilica and next to it the St. Janskerk; the Market Place with its stately Townhall and the intimate Onze-Lieve Vrouweplein with its romanesque Onze-Lieve-Vrouwe Basilica. I also would like to show you photographs of the typical, old Maastricht streets, where time seems to have come to a halt. Especially the Tafelstraat, Bernardusstraat and the Lange Grachtje. Special attention for the Jeker valley, an area of extra-ordinary beauty with a bit further on Canne and Eben-Emaël with its fortress from the Second World War. See also my Maastricht Page, in fact the oldest remaining part of this web site, which has been renewed totally in september 2006, with a lot of digital photography.

Maastricht is one of the oldest cities of the Netherlands. Parts of the old city walls are still standing upright. The park counts many picturesque spots, for instance the Pater Vinktorentje. The St Servaas Church was built back in the year 1000 and later. It's built on the grave of Saint Servatius. The church is located in the heart of the city at the famous Vrijthof Square. The Town Hall in Maastricht is located on the big market square and sits in the center of town. The city hall was built in 1664 by Dutch architect Pieter Post. Nearby is the monumental Boschstraat. One of the main churches of Maastricht is the Onze Lieve Vrouwe Basilica. It's west tower is impressive and the church from the inside is very beautiful. The nearby Jekerkwartier harbours many old buildings. Crossing the river Maas, one enters the suburb Wijck, like the center of Maastricht going back to mediaval times. Many old houses have survived, complete with their facing bricks. At night the city of Maastricht also has its charme as you can see in the series Night Photography. Especially the area of the Helpoort and the Jekerkwartier with its old streets and its nice lanterns are witnesses of the old days. There is also a sub-gallery with black-and-white photography of the downtown of Maastricht, with photographs of around 1975. Some are historic, places which have disappeared in the meantime, or which have been spoiled thoroughly. Carnaval is a very old tradition in the southern Maas- and Rhine-regions. During three days, in Maastricht there are disguised parties, processions and most people have a few days off. From the tours of the Onze-Lieve- Vrouwebasiliek one has tremendous views over the whole city and far surroundings as can been seen in the series Panoramic Views. In the shadow of the Sint-Pietersberg lies the rural suburb Sint-Pieter, which used to be a village but nowadays has been swallowed by Maastricht. Historic attacks on Maastricht were planned here. The fortress Sint-Pieter remains from that time. The Jekerdal (Jeker valley), caused by erosion from the little river the Jeker in the chalk landscape, is of a great beauty. The area is protected and scattered lie groups of old farms. The valley extends until far in Belgium. Oud-Caberg used to be a village but has been incorporated by the city of Maastricht, just as Sint-Pieter. The Van Akenweg accommodates many old farms. In the middle of the field lies a little chapel, surrounded by three lime trees. A bit to the south of Maastricht lies the fortress Eben Emael, which dates from the thirties of the past century and which was blown up at the beginning of W.O. II. On the plateau on top one has a marvellous sight on the far surroundings.

On one of my other web sites, Maastrichter Stokstraat, you will find an interesting documentairy of the Maastricht Stokstraat area in the fifties of the previous century. The photography is of Wil Speth. Images of the recent Stokstraat are added for comparison. Quite a different world...

 

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Before viewing the pictures please check the contrast adjustment on your monitor. You can use my test strip below which I have designed for this purpose. For best viewing, use a gamma value of 2.2 and set the contrast control mode in a position until each individual black and white square (16 in total) is visible.