Beschreibung

The Burgher and the Whore: Prostitution in Early Modern Amsterdam

As the title suggest, this book is about prostitution in the 17th and 18th century. It describes prostitutes by type, whorehouses, acceptance of prostitution, STD’s, legislation, profits & punishments and whatnot. If you really want to understand prostitution and why it has always been around in Amsterdam, you should know more about the history.

Amsterdam is the Academy of Whoredom: Prostitutes, Brothels and Music Houses

This is how the first chapter is called. It shows a bit how Amsterdam always had a reputation for its prostitution. Geert Mak – one of best historians of Amsterdam – wrote in his book (Amsterdam: a brief history of the city) the following sentence: …”Around 1325, there was a solid city complete with harbour and fleet, houses and churches, workers, whores and burgomasters, only one and a half centuries there had been nothing at all.” It shows that prostitutes have always been around in Holland’s capital. Not in the window brothels, but perhaps in taverns, lodges, bars, etc.

This why we have so much interest in prostitution. It has always been around! There is so much to learn about this fascinating profession.

About the the autor of this book

The Burgher & the Whore: Prostitution in Early Modern Amsterdam is written by Lotte van de Pol – a Dutch specialist in cultural, economical and social history. She have studied at one of the best universities of Holland: The Erasmus University in Rotterdam – this is where she received her Ph.d