The Munttoren is 35 meters high and is also called 'De Munt'. This place used to be a city gate: the Regulierspoort, built in the period 1480 to 1487. Together with the Waag and De Schreierstoren, this gate was part of the Medieval city wall. At the time, the Rembrandt square was still a meadow, but soon the city expanded and the gate lost its function. In 1618 the city gate was destroyed by fire and it was decided to rebuild only one tower. The well-known 17th century architect Hendrick de Keyser gave the tower an octagonal superstructure with a clockwork with four dials.
Coins
The name of the Regulierspoort changed to Munttoren in 1672, when Amsterdam was temporarily granted the right of coinage. Currency places Dordrecht and Enkhuizen were inaccessible, because French troops occupied large parts of the Netherlands. As many as 15 million gold ducats have been minted.
Carillon in the Munttoren
The exchange at the Rokin gave its carillon with 22 bells to the Munttoren in 1668, when there was no more room due to an extension. Clocks were immediately added that year and nowadays the carillon consists of no less than 38 bells. The largest clock weighs almost 2.000 kilos! Every Saturday at 2pm you can enjoy a concert by city carillonneur Gideon Bodden.
