Statue farmer family Oudewater - Oudewater

In 1977, a statue in honour of Herman de Man was placed in Oudewater, in front of the town's most important monument, the Heksenwaag. The statue was designed by Ineke van Dijk, who used it to typify a peasant family, as featured in Herman de Man's books. A family that comes from the countryside and visits the city, resting for a while on a bench.

The placement of the statue sparked controversy in Oudewater. The local shopkeepers were outraged that the space the sculpture would occupy would cost not the agreed two parking spaces, but four. It was proposed to put the sculpture in another spot, but the artist had designed it for this very spot. It led to fierce discussions, legal action was threatened, but in the end the sculpture was put on the agreed spot. Herman de Man could have written a nice story about it.... Incidentally, he lived nearby with his parents, from 1910 to 1916, at 61 Leeweringerstraat.