Monument with lookout tower Afsluitdijk

The Kingdom of the Netherlands lies two-thirds below the constantly rising sea level. Taming the tidal waves and swollen rivers is a matter of survival for the Dutch, which has resulted in breathtaking engineering structures and a unique way of working with the landscape. Among the greatest technical wonders is the more than thirty-kilometer-long Afsluitdijk dam, designed by engineer Cornelis Lely, who solved the threat of unexpected floods by connecting North Holland with Friesland. Water management engineer Cornelis Lely also served for nine years as the Dutch Minister of Transport and Water Management. From this position, he vigorously advocated for the idea of damming the Zuiderzee sea bay. From 1886 to 1891, he led a team of experts examining the feasibility of damming the sea. Real public interest only arose in 1916 when the aforementioned area was struck by several devastating floods. A year later, the government approved the giant project, and construction could begin. By damming, the Zuiderzee sea bay was transformed into the controllable Ijsselmeer lake. This project pushed the unpredictable sea inland by 85 kilometers to the north and prevented future flooding. At the same time, the Dutch coastline was shortened by 300 kilometers, allowing for the construction of new inland islands. The 32 km long dam was built simultaneously from both shores. In some parts, the structure is as wide as 90 meters, but it is only 7.5 meters high. The dam has a total of 25 outlets for draining the lake and three sluices for shipping traffic. The author of the sluices Stevinsluizen and Lorentzsluizen is architect Dirk Roosenburg, the grandfather of Rem Koolhaas.
In the place where the dam closed on May 28, 1932, there now stands a 25-meter-high observation tower designed by Dutch architect Willem Marinus Dudok. The white tower rests on a massive black base made of basalt stones. A restaurant is located in the basement. The spiral staircase leads to an observation platform. Dudok planned an expansion with a museum from 1952 to 1956, but this did not happen as the expansion of the road took priority. Below the cantilevered roof, at the base of the observation tower, is a bronze relief by sculptor Hildo Krop. In 2006-07, the Afsluitdijk monument underwent a complete renovation.