Adrianus Bleijs is an unknown to many, which is not surprising since little attention has been paid to him until now. But what Hoorn resident does not know the characteristic domed church on Grote Noord? Or the beautiful storefront De Gekroonde Jaagschuit on the Breed? What visitor to the city of Amsterdam can overlook the imposing St. Nicolaaskerk when leaving Central Station? Which architect is hidden behind the old Onze Lieve Vrouwe Gasthuis, behind many residential and commercial houses in both Hoorn and Amsterdam, and behind several monumental Catholic village churches in North and South Holland? Bleijs was born in 1842 in Hoorn where, after training in Roermond and Antwerp, he established himself as an independent architect in 1864. Sixteen years later he traded Hoorn for Amsterdam, the fast-growing capital, where he would develop into a master builder of distinction. Self-willed as he was, Bleijs refused to conform to one type of architectural style and he surprised both contemporaries from the building world and clients with many buildings of outstanding quality and originality.