Listen | Fish auction
Diagonally left in front of you at the end of the bridge, you see a small square stone building. This is 'De Steg', the old fish market. This is where fishermen traded their fresh catch.
To moor their boats there, they first had to pass the low bridge you just crossed. Very inconvenient because ships with long masts could not pass under it. As a solution, the Monnickendammers made an opening in the bridge deck. This created a narrow opening, also known as an'oorgat'. By manoeuvring precisely through this, sailing ships could still pass under the bridge without having to open it. The oorgat is still in use, this being the wooden bridge section with gravel layer.
Interestingly, Monnickendam itself never had a fishing fleet. All fish traded at the fish auction came from other places along the Zuiderzee. For example, from Marken, Huizen, Volendam and Spakenburg. These Zuiderzee fishermen came specially to Monnickendam to sell their fish. This was what Landlord Philips the Good had decided and had it recorded in a law.
D...
To moor their boat there, they first had to pass the low bridge you just walked over. Very inconvenient because ships with long masts could not pass under it. As a solution, the Monnickendammers made an opening in the bridge deck. This created a narrow opening, also known as an'oorgat'. By manoeuvring precisely through this, sailing ships could still pass under the bridge without having to open it. The oorgat is still in use, this being the wooden bridge section with gravel layer.
Interestingly, Monnickendam itself never had a fishing fleet. All fish traded at the fish auction came from other places along the Zuiderzee. For example, from Marken, Huizen, Volendam and Spakenburg. These Zuiderzee fishermen came specially to Monnickendam to sell their fish. This was decided by Landheer Philips de Goede and laid down in a law.
The popular fish auction created a large fish-processing industry here. You will learn more about this at one of the following locations.
Continue your route straight ahead, then cross the bridge to the Stegh.
