The early history of the Munttoren (Mint Tower) closely mirrors that of another famous tower of Amsterdam, the Montelbaanstoren: both towers formed part of the city's defensive wall in the late 16th century, at which point the Munttoren bore the name Regulierspoort. Both lost their function when the city was expanded and its defensive wall widened; the two towers, which had stood on the perimeter of the old city wall, thus found themselves stranded, obsolete, in the middle of the city.


And both were transformed at the hands of city sculptor and architect Hendrik de Keyser, who retrofitted each with a clock, carillon and Renaissance-style exterior details. For the Munttoren, however, this occurred only after a disastrous fire, which took down its eastern tower - as the Munttoren, unlike the Montelbaanstoren, started off with two towers, one on either side of its facade; only the western tower, the so-called torenstomp ('tower stump'), was restored after the fire.

The Munttoren was rechristened with its current name only in 1672, the Rampjaar ('Disaster Year'), in which four different armies invaded the Netherlands. With the country at war, it became impossible to transport bullion to Dordrecht and Enkhuizen, where coins were usually minted, so the Munttoren became the temporary site of the national mint.

While the tower is not open to the public, visitors can still hear its 38-bell carillon every quarter-hour. On special occasions, the Amsterdam city carillonneur, Gideon Bodden - who also mans the carillons of the Oude Kerkstoren and Zuidertoren - treats the public to live performances.

Munttoren Visitor Information

• Address: Muntplein 12/14
  1012 WR Amsterdam
  Please note that the tower is closed to the public and viewable from the exterior only.
• Location: Oudezijde, Amsterdam Centrum/Center
• Directions: From the south side of Amsterdam Central Station, cross Stationsplein and follow Damrak south; continue southward past the Dam, where the street turns into Rokin. Alternatively, cross the western half of the Dam and take Kalverstraat, the street opposite its southwest corner; both Rokin and Kalverstraat culminate in Muntplein.