hans faber

Refuge on a Terp 2.0. Waiting to Be Liberated

21 August 1930, Wieringermeer in the province of Noord Holland. The reclamation of just another piece of the Zuiderzee ‘southern sea’ was completed. A wooded area, when it was still land, that was called Creilerwoud. Land lost to the sea eight centuries ago during the most destructive All Saints’ Flood in the year 1170. TheContinue reading “Refuge on a Terp 2.0. Waiting to Be Liberated”

Racing on the Wadden Sea With a Silt Sled

The mudflats of the Wadden Sea seem endless. But what do you do with them? How do you give meaning to mud? Sure, one cubic meter of mudflat holds millions of diatoms, thousands of small crabs, mussels, snails, and worms. For birds, all this frutti di mare is like ordering à la carte. Birds areContinue reading “Racing on the Wadden Sea With a Silt Sled”

In Debt to the Beastly Westfrisians

This blog post is about the town of Medemblik — the grande dame of the Westfriesland region in the province of Noord Holland in the Netherlands. A place steeped in legend, said by some to have been the seat of the heathen King Radbod. But more than myths, Medemblik stands at the heart of aContinue reading “In Debt to the Beastly Westfrisians”

Women of Frisia: Free and Unbound?

Below the green and black image of Saskia Holleman, the reincarnation of Mata Hari, her fellow citizen. Saskia was born in 1945 in the town of Leeuwarden in the province of Friesland, standing stark naked in the milky grasslands with a Friesian Holland cow. It is a pamphlet from the former Pacifist Socialist Party (PSP)Continue reading “Women of Frisia: Free and Unbound?”

Walcheren Island. Once the Sodom and Gomorrah of the North Sea

In contrast to today’s Sunday rest, for centuries the island of Walcheren was a pagan stronghold and a safe haven for Vikings with their slightly aggressive business model. Heathen beliefs were deeply rooted on the island. Even in the eleventh century, the Roman Catholic Church feared that its inhabitants might revert to their former paganContinue reading “Walcheren Island. Once the Sodom and Gomorrah of the North Sea”

PRESS STATEMENT: Consensus on Frisia Tribunal

It is a well-known fact that the Frisians fought in foreign armies. Whether as foreign fighters in the Mediterranean and the Levant, or as mercenaries of the Roman Army deployed in Britannia. Also, their medieval kings committed war crimes. Early Frisian merchants were heavily involved in the profitable slave trade on the British Isles. Furthermore,Continue reading “PRESS STATEMENT: Consensus on Frisia Tribunal”

Escher’s Home, Land of Confusion

“Dude, take a deep breath and really look at the landscape below. Don’t panic — you’re not alone, and the world isn’t empty. Exhale slowly… let the smoke drift.” “Take another sigh and now look at the landscape of the piece below. Feeling better already? You see what I mean, brother? And hey — niceContinue reading “Escher’s Home, Land of Confusion”

The One Terp That Should Have Been Named a Wierde?

The Hague, 29 June 2013. On this day, Zwaantje Vink-Brouwer, widow of Piet Vink, together with a delegation of local government officials, re-opened the monument ‘The Terp’ in honour of her late husband. Yet calling this monument a ‘terp’ was a blunder. It outraged the people of the province of Groningen and nearly provoked aContinue reading “The One Terp That Should Have Been Named a Wierde?”

Tolkien Pleaded in Favour of King Finn. An Immortalized Royal Tragedy

Around the year 440 (Shippey 2022), a betrayal unfolded on the southern shores of the North Sea — a tragedy not forgotten in north-western Europe, echoing even in distant Bavaria. And it never will be. We are talking about the bloody battle at the citadel of King Finn — or Fin Folcwalding Fresna cynne, asContinue reading “Tolkien Pleaded in Favour of King Finn. An Immortalized Royal Tragedy”

How Towns Could Drown Overnight: The Case of Rungholt

Rungholt. A thriving and wealthy town of the archipelago of the Wadden Sea that disappeared in the waves overnight in the year 1362. For six centuries, only legends have told us about what happened to Rungholt. A town submerged in the sea as the wrath of God. According to these medieval legends, you could stillContinue reading “How Towns Could Drown Overnight: The Case of Rungholt”