Isa Balder
The water board is responsible for water management in the historic Noorderkwartier region of the province of North Holland. One of these historic structures is the Grote Sluys in the town of Oudesluis. The Grote Sluys and the lock keeper's house were built to a design by lock builder Willem Jansz Benningh. The lock dates from 1562 and was originally built of wood. In 1631, the lock was replaced by a larger one made of stone and was then one of the largest locks in Europe. A sign on the facade indicates how much it cost to sail through the hydraulic engineering complex (here in white on the side of the lock keeper's house). The color of the linocut is derived from the blue flag of the Hollands Noorderkwartier Water Board.
This linocut is an ode to the historical past of Dutch hydraulic engineering. While constructing other hydraulic engineering works, Willem Jansz Benningh had to contend with floods and high tides. The city government encouraged him by promising compensation if the labour . The extra work had cost him 20,000 guilders. However, only 11,000 of their work was credited. To prevent ruin, he sought the intervention of the States General and Prince Maurits. They granted the requested payments.
