This map shows the Scher-meer [Scher lake, also called Schermermeer], a lake that was drained between 1633 and 1635 to claim land. The map shows how this was done: a dike and ditch were built around the lake. Mills would pump water out of the lake, across the dike, into the surrounding ditch, from where it was carried to rivers and ultimately to the sea. Smaller ditches would criss-cross the lake to drain the land. The mills had to continously pump or the lake would fill up again.
The Dutch have been reclaiming land from the sea or lakes since the Middle Ages, but it was not until the 1600s that this was done on an industrial scale like we see on this map of the Schermer.
Map of the Schermer, 1635. Credits: Pieter Wils, collection Regionaal Archief Alkmaar (public domain)
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