De Vijf Koppen (The Five Heads) Bastion, Maastricht

De Vief Köp (The Five Heads), otherwise known as De Drie Duiven (The Three Pigeons), is a late 15th-century/early 16th-century bastion. Together with the nearby Haet ende Nijt it once formed an extension of the original 14th-century second city wall of Maastricht. Both bastions, now parts of the Maastricht City Park, have been national monuments since 1966.

Just like most of the city fortifications, The Five Heads was initially unnamed. In the 17th century, the names "die Duive" or "de Drie Duiven" were used, after a nearby inn. Quite possibly, this name also refers to the three Jeker branches that meet here. In 1638, after the failed Betrayal of Maastricht, the severed heads of the five main suspects were displayed here on a stake. The name De Vijf Koppen came into use perhaps only in the late 19th century, when calls were made for the rehabilitation of the 'Catholic traitors'.

The Liège-Maastricht Canal, dug in 1845-50, ran close to De Vijf Koppen, forming a turning basin, officially called Zwanengracht. After the abolition of Maastricht's fortress in 1867, large parts of the medieval city walls and most of the outbuildings were demolished, clearing space for the construction of the Stadspark in 1888.

As a part of it, the Zwanengracht was made into a pond. In 1973, a large fountain was placed in the pond around the bastion, powered by ten water pumps and illuminated by forty spotlights. Nowadays, the variable play of the water jets goes on every few minutes.

On March 24, 2019, part of the ramparts at the Five Heads collapsed.