Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, commonly called “Schiphol,” is a well-known Dutch phenomenon. It is the country’s largest, most important airport and currently lies in the middle of the nation’s most densely populated urban area. Since its inception, much has been written about the airport: as a business, as a contributor to the Dutch economy, and as a burden on the region. Schiphol Airport has rooted itself in the Dutch consciousness as the nation’s main airport, despite having a history in which its existence was challenged often and its side effects have become more negatively perceived since the introduction of the jet airplane. Much has been written about the airport: as a business, as a contributor to the Dutch economy, and as a burden on the region. Yet, literature has not touched upon exactly how the airport as a phenomenon found its footing in a densely populated urban area and how this has become so accepted. The most obvious reason for this gap is that the answer cannot be found solely in the study and analysis of Schiphol’s business results or economic impact alone. The understanding of how this airport came to be embraced as the country’s national airport, consequently, must begin with the study of imagination, for it is imagination that precedes new developments. This thesis, therefore, concerns itself with the history of the cultural significance of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol and how this materialized in the spatial manifestations of the airport. With this research the dominant general recognizable characterizations of Schiphol -its “image”- was traced during the selected time frame. And secondly to analyze the airports spatial development through its terminals. Hence, the following main research questions are central to this thesis: How did Schiphol manifest both as an “image” and as architecture from 1920 until 2006; how did these manifestations materialize; how do they relate to each other; and finally, how did these manifestations contribute to the airport’s cultural significance during this time? ...