Introduction

The stork has a close connection with The Hague: in the modern city coat of arms, the bird appears with a snake in its beak. Its antecedents go way back, and the connection between stork and city is no coincidence either. One of the account entries discussed here, from 1371-1372, justifies expenditure to build a stork's nest, almost certainly on the Binnenhof. Incidentally, the investments were not altruistic, as the stork brought good luck. Other entries in this account show how the Noordmolen and the Eikenduinen mill were maintained.

This page from the account of Foyken Willemszoon provides a nice illustration of what can be found in the expenditure section of a medieval account.

Physical Description

Cursive script, written op paper.