top of page

Search


One Day, All the Sunken Church Bells Will Surface and Speak to Us Sternly
Imagine a time unlike ours. When there were no engines, amplifiers, and speakers, and the sounds you heard were made by the actions of men, beasts, or the elements of nature. Be quiet and listen. Can you hear the chatter of children and vendors, and the hooves of horses on the streets? Can you hear the loose sails of docked ships flapping, drying in the wind? A time when communities, villages, and towns were of manageable size. This soundscape was a world where the sound of t
Hans Faber
Jun 234 min read


A Frontier Known as Watery Mess: the Coast of Flanders
At the end of the eighth century, by decree of Charlemagne and under the supervision of the wise men Wlemar and Saxmund, the customary law of the Frisians was codified. It is called the Lex Frisionum . Its jurisdiction included the land between the Flehum and Sincfalam rivers 'between Vlie and Sincfalam River'. The River Flehum flowed into the North Sea, where the sea strait Vlie is located today, between the islands of Terschelling and Vlieland. Sincfalam , also written as
Hans Faber
Aug 9, 202153 min read


Legend of Esonstad: One of the Many Sunken Towns
When, on a moonlit night, you stand atop the dyke at Lake Lauwersmeer and gaze out over the water, you might just catch a glimpse of the...
Hans Faber
Nov 1, 20208 min read


Atlantis Found! Wait, There Is Another One, or 7, Wait 12 in Total... No, 19!
Frisia could easily claim the title: land of Atlantis. 19 inhabited islands and 244 villages drowned along the old Frisian coast trail in the past 1,500 years. We bet there are more out there... Atlantis emerged in the writings of Greek philosopher Plato. That was around 350 BC. In two of his dialogues, the "Temaeus" and the "Critas", he mentions the lost city. Atlantis was not only known for its mysterious civilisation, but even more for its cataclysmic destruction some 7,

Frans Riemersma
May 5, 202014 min read


Out of Averting the Inevitable an Unruly Community Was Born
On March 25, 2020, the coronavirus pandemic was climbing towards its second peak. There was uncertainty about how destructive the...
Hans Faber
Mar 25, 202038 min read


The United Frisian Emirates and Black Peat. How Holland Became Dutch
In this blog post, we will argue that the Frisian lands might just as well be called the United Frisian Emirates. Granted, there are a few superficial differences with the modern United Arab Emirates. The Emiratis have camels and goats; the Frisians have cows and sheep. Their climate is hot and dry; the Frisians’ is wet and cold—for now. With global warming, palm trees may soon line the long dykes of the Wadden Sea and turn its barrier islands into Maldivian-style retreats. A
Hans Faber
May 12, 201929 min read


Burn Beacons Burn. A Coastal Inferno—Nordfriesland
Nordfriesland or North Frisia. The western coast and islands of the region of Schleswig. Stretching from the Danish town Tønder in the...
Hans Faber
Oct 14, 201813 min read


Refuge on a Terp 2.0. Waiting to Be Liberated
pumping station Lely by Joh. H. van Mastenbroek August 21, 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. The embanked land—or polder  in the Dutch language—is now being named Wieringermeerpolder instead of Creiler
Hans Faber
Mar 31, 20186 min read


Half a Million Deaths. A Forgotten North Sea Disaster...
Did you know that between 328,770 and 502,190 people lost their lives around the North Sea? On the flip side: millions of possible casualties have been prevented succesfully. For now at least... Half a million casualties is a lot. How could we forget about such a huge number? Did nobody notice? Did nobody mention? It seems it is not even a public secret. Did we forget about it all together? Are we in denial? Living along the North Sea coast is not easy. It is dangerous. The

Frans Riemersma
Jan 13, 20186 min read


How a Town Drowned 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 still hear the chime of its church bells  rising from the dark depths of the sea. But now the remains of the town of Rungholt in Landkreis  'district' Nordfriesland, also ca
Hans Faber
May 7, 201717 min read
bottom of page
