This First Day Cover commemorates two things on 21st January 1986. 100 years of Dutch Criminal Code & Three Centuries of the Normal Amsterdam Level
The stamp on the left(50c) is regarding the 100 years of Dutch Criminal Code of Justice, namely from 1886 to 1986.
The stamp on the Right(60c) is about the three centuries of the Normal Amsterdam Level, or the Amsterdam Ordnance Datum (AOD). Three centuries ago a standard ordnance datum was established in Amsterdam, based on the average high water mark of the Zuiderzee, which was Amsterdam’s connection with the North Sea. This ordnance datum was – and is – the referral point for all constructions of any kind in the Netherlands. It was also adopted as the standard for the European Union.
The NAP was established in Amsterdam in the 17th century. In that century floods and waterlogging occurred frequently. In 1675 a flood disaster initiated a huge effort to better protect vulnerable low-lying areas and their inhabitants against floods. The high tide water was henceforth measured systematically. Between 1683 and 1684 the high tide water mark was measured daily. The average was called the “Amsterdam level” (acronym A.P.). This average high tide sea level was adopted as the zero level (reference plane). It was used to improve and where needed to heighten existing dykes and water barriers to a safe level. In 1684 the mayor of Amsterdam, Johannes Hudde, had eight marble stones cemented in the sluices around the IJ. Every stone had a horizontal groove in the middle with the inscription:
ZEEDIJKSHOOGHTE ZIJNDE NEGEN
(sea dyke height being nine foot five thumbs above town-level).
Thank you Maria for this nice cover.
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