Hirschgebouw, Heritage building at Leidseplein, Netherlands
The Hirschgebouw is a five-story building with a concrete frame wrapped in gray sandstone from Arzviller, crowned by a distinctive dome tower. Today it houses various shops and restaurants while maintaining its protected status as a national monument.
This building opened on November 14, 1912, as a luxury department store called Hirsch & Cie. It operated continuously at this location until 1976, after which it was repurposed for other commercial uses.
The building reflects how retail design evolved in Amsterdam, blending French architectural influences with early 20th-century construction methods. Its distinctive stone facade shapes how visitors experience this busy square today.
The building sits at Leidseplein 25 in the center of Amsterdam and is easy to reach from public transport. Multiple shops and restaurants operate inside, each with their own access points and opening hours.
The building rests on more than 1,600 wooden foundation piles driven deep into Amsterdam's soft soil to keep it stable. These hidden structures beneath the street level remain essential to the building's integrity today.
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