Caland monument (1907) Henri Evers & Arend Odé

The Caland monument is dedicated to the water management engineer Pieter Caland (1826 - 1902), the inventor of the Nieuwe Waterweg. The construction of this water street allowed the port of Rotterdam to grow strongly at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. The architectural design for the monument was made by the master builder of the Rotterdam town hall, Henri Evers. He in turn engaged the Delft professor AWM Odé for the sculpture. The monument was completed in 1907 and was given a central location on the Coolsingel until it had to be moved to the more remote Veerkade in 1939 for technical reasons. In retrospect, that was probably a happy decision, because chances are it will Caland monument otherwise the bombing of 1940 would not have survived. The basis of it Caland monument serves as an overflow basin for a number of water basins. Bronze lion heads hang above these three basins, which spit the basins full. At the front, a bow-shaped water basin is populated by two naked figures. Various inscriptions have been made in stone plaques. The one on the west side reads: 'The Council of Water Management. Set up to assess the plans to improve Rotterdam's seaways, prefers Caland's design, based on the effect of ebb and flow. Accordingly, the law of January 24, 1863 orders the excavation of the Hook of Holland and the damming of the rift.' A plaque on the east side shows an overview map of the region with the intended design of the Waterway. On top of the stone obelisk is a winged female figure, the genius of Rotterdam. It Caland monument together with it GJ de Jongh monument, Sculpture monument en Square island in the lake a collection of water management works in Rotterdam.