Tile Dirk van Hasseltssteeg: Spinoza

We have the rare good fortune of living in a republic in which freedom is valued more than anything else. (1670)

Both freedom of speech and tolerance for other religions were important to Spinoza. Amsterdam was an example in this. His parents had fled from Portugal, where Jews feared their lives. Jews were much safer in Amsterdam. This family history is noticeable in the thinking of Spinoza. According to him, everyone should be able to adhere to and express their own faith in safety. On top of that, this freedom should not be abused to limit the freedom of others: everyone may think, say and write what they want, as long as they do not harm others.

The book where this quote is from, the Tractatus Theologico-Politicus or TTP, was published by Jan Rieuwertsz. This tile lies here, at the beginning of this alley where Rieuwertsz had his office. The publishing house was located at Dirk van Hasseltssteeg 14. Unfortunately, there is nothing left of the original building. To remember this brave man the tile is here: te TTP was even in the relatively free Amsterdam immediately prohibited.

Tour: Extended tour part 2: from Descartes to Spinoza

For children 10+

Use this qr code to follow the route offline in the IZI.travel app.

If you don’t have this app yet you will be asked to install it first.

This is part 2 of the extended tour ‘the freedom of Amsterdam’. Part 2 tells you about several philophers from Amsterdam in the seventeenth century and their influence. This version is for kids of 10 years or older.

Tour: Extended tour part 1 ‘Freedom of Amsterdam’: the origins of freedom

For children 10+

Use this qr code to follow the route offline in the IZI.travel app.

If you don’t have this app yet you will be asked to install it first.

This is part 1 of the extended tour ‘The freedom of Amsterdam’. This part is about the origins of the freedom of Amsterdam, a city that had an unprecedented press freedom and tolerance towards other beliefs. This version is for kids from 10 years or older.

Extended tour part 1: ‘The freedom of Amsterdam’: The origins of freedom

For adults 16+

This is part 1 of the extended tour ‘The freedom of Amsterdam’. This part is about the origins of the freedom of Amsterdam, a city that had an unprecedented press freedom and tolerance towards other beliefs.

Use this qr code to follow the route offline in the IZI.travel app.

If you don’t have this app yet you will be asked to install it first.