The part of Herengracht you are now on is the most dazzling impressive part of the canal ring and the most expensive and most beautiful houses were built here. In fact, the wealth of this part of town gives it its name: ‘Gouden Bocht’ or Golden Bend.

Take good look at the houses along this part of the canal: these are the typically large canal houses where the richest Amsterdam merchants once lived. In Amsterdam’s heyday, these buildings all had almost the same layouts and the same characteristic, luxurious interiors. The photographs show how the wealthy residents furnished their canal houses: marble columns, silk curtains and paintings by Dutch masters hanging on the wall.

Nowadays, the merchant houses on the Golden Bend often provide office accommodation for businesses such as law firms, banks and stock exchange dealers. The Mayor of Amsterdam lives here too, at number 502, a little further back along Herengracht, on this side of the water.