Monument erected in honour of Dr Sjeng Tans
On Friday 2 September 2016, a monument was unveiled on the square outside the Maastricht University School of Business and Economics – the original home of Maastricht University – in honour of Dr Sjeng Tans. The monument was the initiative of the Dr J. Tans Committee and was created by sculptor Caius Spronken.
The university has become an integral part of the city and, partly for this reason, Dr Tans deserves a prominent and permanent place that reminds us all of his contribution to both Maastricht and the region. The Dr J. Tans Committee therefore launched a campaign to erect a monument in his honour, in the place where it all began: the heart of Maastricht. The monument is a gift to the city of Maastricht and its residents. This initiative was made possible with the support of the Municipality of Maastricht, the Province of Limburg, Maastricht Academic Hospital, Maastricht University, the Elisabeth Strouven Foundation, the Kanunnik Salden/Nieuwenhof Foundation and the Limburg University Fund/SWOL.
The UM Executive Board would like to thank the initiators for organising this special campaign during the university's anniversary year.
After his political career in the Dutch House of Representatives, the municipal council and the Provincial Council of Limburg, Dr Tans was appointed president of the preparatory committee for the Maastricht Medical Faculty, which was tasked with establishing Maastricht University. In 1977, he became chair of the university’s first executive board. Maastricht University honours its founder each year with the annual Tans Lecture, the Tans Medal for outstanding contributions to the university and the Dr. Tanszaal and Dr. Tans building in Randwyck.
Find out more about the monument on the KEC (Art and Heritage Commission) website.

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