Land and Water

At the centre of the engraving, within a shield, appears archangel Michaël, the guardian angel of the Schermeer. To the left are attributes associated with water: a fishing net, boat hook, rod, creel and pole. To the right are implements relating to the land: a scythe, hand harrow, ears of grain, cheese tub, butter churn, basket and yoke. Beneath the shield are a hayfork and spade, symbols of the construction of the dikes. Above the shield sit two dogs representing fidelity, flanking a bundle of reed plumes. The composition is derived from the map of the new polder made by the surveyor Pieter Wils in 1635.

Investment and Enterprise

From the late sixteenth to the mid-seventeenth century, several lakes in North Holland — including the Zijpe, Wieringerwaard, Beemster, Purmer and Heerhugowaard — were drained. The Schermeer was the last to follow, in 1633: an ambitious undertaking given its size of 4,700 hectares and depth of four metres below sea level.
Using 52 windmills and the proven system of stepped drainage, the Schermeer was drained within just two years. Two years later, the first stolp farmhouses in the new polder were completed.
One of the main reasons for this reclamation was the ever-narrowing Huygendijk, which not only served as protection against the water but, until 1855, was also the only land connection between the Zaan region and Alkmaar on one side and Hoorn and Purmerend on the other. In addition, the project offered excellent investment opportunities: the reclaimed land was divided into plots and leased for agricultural use.

Weldijk

In 1792 this brazier was commissioned by the dijkgraaf (chief engineer) and heemraden (wardens) of the Schermer, who in 1793 presented it to the Reverend Jakobus Weldijk — appropriately named for his association with the dike (Weldijk meaning “well-dike”).
Weldijk, minister of the North Schermer parish, was born in Haarlem in 1763. In August 1793 he declined a call from Gorcum, choosing instead to continue serving the Schermer community. As a token of appreciation, the heemraden decided to offer him a gift in silver — or, if he preferred, an increase in salary — entirely at their own expense. Dijkgraaf Bucerus was charged with arranging the matter. Clearly, the esteem in which Weldijk was held was considerable; the Schermer council did not wish to lose him.

A Remarkable Gift

During the meeting of 12 October 1793, a letter written by Weldijk on 27 September was discussed, in which he expressed his gratitude for “…the agreeable present of silver, consisting of a silver tobacco box (tobacco jar), two ditto braziers and two ditto trays.” A remarkable gift indeed.

Of the five known silver gifts presented to Weldijk, only this pipe brazier is known to survive. It was made by the Amsterdam silversmith Martinus Logerath in 1792. It is noteworthy that the commission went to Amsterdam, even though nearby Enkhuizen and Hoorn had flourishing silversmithing traditions. The reason was likely practical — in Amsterdam, with its greater number of workshops, production could proceed more efficiently and promptly.

Martinus Logerath

Martinus Logerath was originally a master silversmith from The Hague. Born in 1733, he learned the craft from his father Johannes Logerath. At the age of thirty-one he moved to Amsterdam, where he married three years later. In 1767 — the year of his marriage — he completed his master’s test and paid his guild fees to be admitted as a master in the Amsterdam guild.
He subsequently established himself as an independent silversmith at Egelantiersgracht 58, near the Maagdelievenstraat. There he produced large silver pieces such as tobacco jars, salt cellars, trays and bread baskets. His maker’s mark — three apples within a contoured shield — can be found on this brazier. Logerath remained active until about 1814 and is regarded as one of the leading Amsterdam silversmiths of the late eighteenth century. Works by his hand are represented in the collection of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam.