This ice skate consists of a wooden sole and a glide-iron. The very earliest ice skates were made of animal bones that were whittled to be smooth on the underside. Skates of this kind remained in use even after far superior iron skates were available. This ice skate was found, and probably also made, at the smithy on the Nieuwendijk. The excavation that took place in 1979 indicated that the smith did not limit himself to working iron. He also fashioned items for general use, made from various materials. Skating is deeply rooted in the Dutch culture. The ice-cold winters of centuries past offered weeks – and sometimes months - of fun on the ice and, more importantly, provided a means of transport of terrific speed. The large quantities of water in Amsterdam thus were transformed into an efficient ice highway.