A heavy, arched brick gateway on Prinsengracht marks the entrance to Het Hooftshofje. Behind this gate, twenty-two small almshouse dwellings enclose a quiet, rectangular courtyard garden. Diederick Hooft, a wealthy councilor, founded this retreat in sixteen fifteen for elderly women in need of housing. He specified that the residents must be members of the Dutch Reformed Church. For centuries, the inner garden provided these women with a secluded space away from the city, and the original, stark architecture remains largely unchanged.
Het Hooftshofje
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