Beeld van Jacoba van Tongeren Statue

Hidden in plain sight, the Beeld van Jacoba van Tongeren stands as a quiet testament to courage. The Beeld van Jacoba van Tongeren isn’t just a bronze statue. It’s a whisper of resistance in the heart of Amsterdam. This statue, crafted by Fabio Pravisani, remembers Jacoba van Tongeren and the resistance organization she led, Group 2000. The Beeld van Jacoba van Tongeren was unveiled on October 10, 2021. It’s located near where Jacoba lived during the early days of the German occupation. Her address was Antillenstraat 45, just a stone’s throw from where we stand. Jacoba van Tongeren, a woman of unwavering resolve, organized a resistance group in 1940. This group, known as Group 2000, provided shelter, food coupons, identification cards, and medical assistance to 4,000 people in hiding. Many of those they helped were Jewish. The statue’s plinth bears three plaques. The front describes her resistance work. The sides list the 150 members of Group 2000. A “code book” is even incorporated into the statue’s design, a nod to Jacoba’s ingenious methods. Jacoba’s code, a unique cipher, protected the names and addresses of those under her care until liberation in 1945. Even her own address remained undiscovered by the Nazis. The Beeld van Jacoba van Tongeren serves as a powerful reminder of her bravery and the sacrifices made during wartime. She stands as the only woman at the top of the Amsterdam resistance during World War II. A woman who saved thousands, her legacy lives on in the bronze and stone before us.