For more than 600 years, the Begijnhof, one of the oldest parts of Amsterdam, has been located in a quiet spot of Amsterdam’s busy city center. The date of the foundation of the Begijnhof has never been fixed and can probably never be determined. The first mention dates back to 1307, and there is mention of Begijnen in Amstelland’s administration. In 1346 there is mention of a ‘Beghynhuys’ that was handed over to the Begijnen on july 31, 1346 by Coppe van der Lane in full ownership. On August 7, 1393, Albrecht van Beyeren, the great protector of pious Amsterdam institutions, ratified the statutes of the Begijnhof. In this letter he protected the Begijnen and prescribed a number of rules that the Beguines had to adhere to.