Obviously, this isn’t the bench you see in the photograph on your map. In June 2021, just a week after these walks were launched, eleven new, identical benches were placed around the West Side Church, each of them sponsored by different people or organizations. This bench was adopted by the Zaan Rainbow, the local LGBTQ+ community, as is evident from the colours!
Jan Hovers, former director of the Zaan’s Museum, tells the famous story of the cruel bull in this short film from 2019. The hapless farmer Jacob Egh and his wife were both killed by an enraged bull in a field in the south of Zaandam. They were buried in this church.
The incident took place in 1647, but it still lives on in the name of the church: the Bullekerk (Bull’s Church). It was built between 1638 and 1640, and was given the name Westzijderkerk (West Side Church). In front of it, you will find a bronze statue “Stier met vrouw” (Bull and woman), made by Julia van Verscheur (1926-2016). It was placed here in 1978 at the completion of the extensive renovation of both the church and its surroundings in that year.
