r/casualEurope • u/FrankWanders • 2d ago

Oldest photo of the Keizersgracht in Amsterdam in 1857, and in 2025

Gallery image

Gallery image

19 Upvotes

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5

u/thisislieven 2d ago

James Higson (Manchester) also took a number of photographs of Amsterdam in 1904, they're quite beautiful. The images are part of the Rijksmuseum collection.

2

u/FrankWanders 2d ago

Wow, much older but indeed very visible also that photography had matured by then, enabling much better pictures.

1

u/curious2c_1981 1d ago

The canal seems wider in the older photograph. Was it narrowed later by widening the road outside the buildings on both sides?

1

u/FrankWanders 1d ago

I don't know but i think it could be it's the boats blocking the view, and the angle of the photo was a bit closer to the water back then. But im not sure. Maybe an 'Amsterdammer' can help out ;)

1

u/curious2c_1981 1d ago

Thank you for responding promptly to my question.