Canals of Amsterdam

Could Amsterdam be Amsterdam without its canals? I think not. In the background is the Dome of the Church of St Nicholas. Most of the canals were dug between 1585 and 1665 to provide drainage, transport, defence and sewage. Earth recovered from digging was used to raise the bordering streets where the merchants houses were located. Construction of the Church of St Nicholas, based on several styles,the most prominent being the Neo-Baroque and Neo-Renaissance, completed in 1887.