Mercury in Amsterdam

Mercury on the VOC-ship "Amsterdam"

For Shirin,
who will soon settle in this city

The Roman deity Mercury, or Mercurius, or Hermes (to use his ancient Greek name) was the protector of anyone on the road. That means in the first place that he was the god of the heralds and the merchants, who had to travel wide and far. However, in the age before capitalism, making profit was considered to be something close to stealing, so Mercury was also believed to be the protector of the thieves.

Among the greatest risks facing any Greek or Roman traveller was the meeting with a dog. They were not the nice animals of today: shepherds used them to keep wolves and bears away, so the shepherd's dogs were not afraid of human beings, and might attack them. The ancient Greeks therefore venerated their Hermes also as the killer of Argos (a mythological watchdog with a hundred eyes).

A third task of Mercury was the protection of the souls of the departed who had to descend into the Netherworld (the house of Hades). One of his titles was ψυχοπομπός (psychopompos, "guide of the souls"). Among his other responsibilities were the protection of messengers and people who had to speak in public, and from this, he became the protector of sophists.

You will not see Mercury performing those tasks in Amsterdam, but there are many statues, busts, and other representations, including houses and offices, all dating back to the seventeenth to twentieth centuries, which show the ancient god as the protector of trade. Occasionally, you will find a Mercury killing a monster, and of course you're always allowed to think about the protector of thieves after your encounter with an Amsterdam pickpocket.

Among Mercury's attributes are a winged hat or helmet, winged sandals, and especially his herald's staff or caduceus: a winged scepter surrounded by snakes. Sometimes, you will see only Mercury's hat or staff, but they will still remind you that Amsterdam owes its prosperity to international trade.


Mercury on the palace on Dam Square	Mercury on the Herengracht	Herengracht 220	Herengracht 141

Frankendael Park	Stock Exchange Building	Stock Exchange Building	The façade of the Railroad Station

"Mercurius Building"	Herengracht 255	Singel 36	Singel 116

Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 162	Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 182 ("Magna Plaza")	Herengracht 262-266	Herengracht 380

Herengracht 141	Dam Square 20 (Madame Tussaud's)	Damrak 38	Singel 186

Singel 326	Keizersgracht 316	Leidsestraat 40	Keizersgracht 64

Stock Exchange Building (again)	Enge Kapelsteeg	Royal Tropical Institute	Singel 87

Raadhuisstraat 15	Building "Mercurius", Prinseneiland 73	Building "Mercuur", Oudezijds Voorburgwal.	Building "Hermes", Herengracht 278

Kromme Waal 4	Van Woustraat 2	Heiligeweg	Mercury as Argos killer (Raadhuisstraat 2-6)

Herengracht 142	Mercury's attributes at the Scheepvaarthuis.	Prinsengracht 622.	Mercatorplein

Herengracht 6	Nieuwe doelensteeg 6	Frederiksplein 10	Herengracht 537

View Mercury in Amsterdam in a larger map

Livius.Org

Germania Inferior

Culture of the Netherlands

Photos of the Netherlands

History of the Netherlands