Dinghuis

{{short description|Government building in Maastricht}}

{{expand Dutch|topic=struct|Dinghuis (Maastricht)|date=June 2019}}

{{For|the similarly named building in Dorne | :nl:Dinghuis (Dorne)}}

File:Dinghuis.jpg

The Dinghuis (Ding House) is a building in downtown Maastricht, Netherlands, constructed at the end of the 15th century. (Ding is the Dutch name for the governing assembly known in most Germanic languages as a thing.)

The building was constructed in the gothic style of architecture. The northern façade, built around 1470, is timber-framed, and the main façade, built of Namur stone, has a pediment containing a grand clock face. At the top of the steeply sloped roof is a tower that was once used as a lookout.

The  Dinghuis served mainly administrative and judicial functions (a ding/thing being a judicial assembly), and its cellars contained gaols for holding prisoners. In 1713, the Dinghuis also served as a theater. Today, it is home to the town's visitor center.

References

  • {{aut|Boogard, J. van den, en S. Minis}} (2001): Monumentengids Maastricht. Primavera Pers, Leiden. {{ISBN|90-74310-52-4}}
  • {{aut|Koreman, J.G.J.}} (1974): Rondom Het Maastrichtse Dinghuis. Het Limburgse Monument #2. Schrijen, Maastricht
  • {{aut|Mes, W.}} (1986): Het Dinghuis. Maastrichts Silhouet #21. Stichting Historische Reeks Maastricht, Maastricht. {{ISBN|90-70-356-29-5}}
  • {{aut|Ubachs, P.J.H., en I.M.H. Evers}} (2005): Historische Encyclopedie Maastricht. Walburg Pers, Zutphen. {{ISBN|90-5730-399-X}}