1989 - 1994

Boekesteyn

1989 - 1994

Boekesteyn

Boekesteyn forms part of a characteristic, rectangular strip of country estates laid out in the seventeenth century, subsequent to the parcellations and sand excavations on the periphery of the Gooi District. When the Society for the Preservation of Nature Monuments (Vereniging Natuurmonumenten) became owner of Boekesteyn in 1992, it commissioned Bureau B+B to draw up a renovation plan for the entire estate.

Location

‘s Graveland

Client

Vereniging tot behoud van Natuurmonumenten

Year
1989 - 1994

Like the neighbouring estates, Boekesteyn also features a clear and logical framework of ditches, paths, great open spaces and wooded areas, with a lush park landscape in its interior. Bureau B+B’s plan took as starting points the linear design of the ’s-Graveland country estates and the characteristic calibration and spatial division of the estate into two parts: a dense park wood and an open grassland area. New elements were added to Boekesteyn’s rich history, given expression by specific components from different style periods, such as an educational garden (featuring a bog, among other things) near the visitors’ centre, a car park bordered by hedgerows and a large oval pond at the end of the long avenue. The pond behind the main building refers to the one that was located here untill the 1950s. New bridges complete the visitors’ experience. Boekesteyn is now popular as a park for taking walks in, and is praised for its attractive vistas, spectacular water gardens and beautiful bridges.