Amsterdam

View of the Munttoren and its chime in Amsterdam. The Munttoren is the old coin tower, that was a part of the first city wall in the 15th century. The tower obtained its name in 1672, when the town hold the coinage prerogative for two years. During this time the town Utrecht, that was the proper holder of the coinage prerogative, was occupied by French troops. Amsterdam is the capital of the Netherlands. The town is located in the province of North Holland at the mouth of the river Amstel and the river Ij into the Ijsselmeer. Amsterdam dates back to the 12th century. The town was built around a barrage in the river Amstel on about 5 millions of fir boles. Due to its oversea trade at the end of the 16th century the then Hanseatic city Amsterdam had become the most prosperous city of Europe. Nowadays the town that is nerved by canals has the biggest old town of Europe. It was declared to Unesco World Heritage in 1996.