Architects: Jacob F. Klinkhamer (1854-1928) and Adolf Leonard van Gendt (1835-1901)
Commissioned by: Johan Philip Korthals Altes (Director of N.V. Maatschappij tot Exploitatie van Graansilos en Pakhuizen, or Grain Silo & Warehouse Development Company Plc.
Years of construction: 1896-1898.
Transportation of grain
Ships were unloaded with the aid of a steam-powered elevator. Conveyor belts brought the grain to the centrally located cleansing building, where it would then be dried using fans and cleansed of metallic residues, stones and weeds. Afterwards it would be stored in the 120 vertical shafts, each totalling fifteen square metres, in the wings to the left and right of the cleansing building.
The renovated granery became an apartment complex
Modern technology
It was in the Netherlands that such large quantities of grain were stored in vertical shafts for the first time. Prior to this it had been stored in warehouses, but moisture resulted in fermentation and spoilage. Modern vertical storage technology rendered manual lifting of thousands of sacks of grain superfluous.
The engine room of the granary, 1987
Defensive role
The massive building has been finished in a sober, almost mediaeval style with arcatures, battlements and corner turrets. Due to the fact that the silo formed part of the Stelling van Amsterdam (defence line of Amsterdam), architect Klinkhamer wished to express the defensive role and utilitarian character in the design.
The granary prior to renovation
Symmetrical
This building is a rare example of a silo building that has been finished entirely in brick. What is striking is that the silo is largely symmetrical. It is a reference to the efficient operational process. In 1952 the concrete silo was built next to it for additional storage space.
