View of the Nieuwe Vaart and Kattenburgervaart, seen from the Oosterkerk

At the dawn of the 20th century, the rapidly changing city of Amsterdam served as the stage for Heinen, a photographer and decorative painter. He climbed up tall buildings, for instance the then new Rijksmuseum and Central Station, to shoot his panoramas from the top. Along with the growing urbanisation, the photographs also show life on the street. We see skippers with their cargo sailing by, and pavers working on the road.