Emerald Empire, Postmodern building in Amsterdam, Netherlands

Emerald Empire is a mostly white, rounded apartment building on the eastern tip of KNSM-eiland, an island in Amsterdam’s harbor area. It rises seven to nine floors around a central courtyard, with continuous balconies and bay windows facing the water on three sides.

The block was designed by Jo Coenen and built during the 1990s as part of the conversion of the old KNSM harbor island into housing. It replaced the earlier industrial and storage uses that had defined this edge of the Amsterdam docks.

The inner courtyard, called Venetiëhof or Venice courtyard, is shared by residents and gives a quiet, garden-like break from the open water around the island. The water villas next to it, known as “pearls,” echo the canal-like setting and add a small-scale counterpoint to the big round block.

The building is easy to reach on foot or by bike from the rest of the island, with open streets and green pockets nearby. You can walk around the outer edge to see the water and the smaller villas without entering the private residential areas.

The name “Emerald Empire” comes from a Dutch phrase meaning “belt of emeralds,” a nickname for the former Dutch East Indies. It is a quiet reminder of colonial-era naming traditions standing at the water’s edge, where most visitors notice only the white curved walls.