zpostcode
5 Landmark Buildings in Copenhagen
Apr 2, 2025 9:49 PM

  

5 Landmark Buildings in Copenhagen1

   Copenhagen’s history reaches back to at least the 10th century, when a village is known to have existed where Denmark’s capital does today. Copenhagen’s architectural heritage is extensive and spans centuries; these five buildings are, relatively speaking, more recent and not always at the top of the typical traveler’s itinerary.

  Earlier versions of the descriptions of these buildings first appeared in 1001 Buildings You Must See Before You Die, edited by Mark Irving (2016). Writers’ names appear in parentheses.

  Bertel Thorvaldsen was one of Europe’s finest Neoclassical sculptors. Born in Copenhagen, he studied in Rome from 1796 and spent most of the rest of his life there, accepting commissions from all over Europe. In 1838 he decided to return home for good, founding a museum to house his collections of plaster models of his entire output, as well as contemporary paintings and antique artifacts.

  Thorvaldsen’s Museum is a key building in the history of Danish Classicism. Completed in 1848, it was built just as the old Neoclassicism was passing out of fashion but before historicism had taken root. The museum was the first and most important work of its architect, Michael Gottlieb Bindersbøll. It was built on the site of the old Royal Carriage House, not far from the Christiansborg Palace. The reuse of that building’s foundations largely dictated the museum’s dimensions. Bindersbøll’s study of polychromy in the decoration of antique buildings materially affected his design. The basic color of the simple and massive exterior is a rich ocher, with architectural elements picked out in white, green, and blue. The portal motifs of the entrance front are carried around the sides, where they contain windows and frame a remarkable s’graffito (“scratched” plaster) frieze by Jørgen Sonne depicting the transport of Thorvaldsen’s collections from Rome to Copenhagen, in a modern-dress equivalent of an ancient Roman triumph. The museum’s interior is decorated with plain dark colors to set off the sculpture, and the ceilings are decorated in paint and stucco in the Pompeian style. The entrance vestibule is large and barrel-vaulted. Beyond, a glazed peristyle surrounds the courtyard while the side wings contain a series of small rooms or alcoves to house individual major works of art. At the far end is a hall for the display of Thorvaldsen’s figure of Christ. (Charles Hind)

  Nothing quite prepares the visitor for the extraordinary sight of this towering brick church, a building that resembles a cross between a gigantic pipe organ and a German Expressionist movie set.

  In 1913, architect Peder Vilhelm Jensen-Klint won the competition to design the church as a memorial to the popular hymn writer N.F.S. Grundtvig, but it was not until 1921 that the foundation stone was laid. The site is a square in the residential suburb of Bispebjerg, in the northwest of Copenhagen, where Jensen-Klint also designed the surrounding houses. The church is conceived in an Expressionist style, but the form also draws on the Gothic brick churches of northern Europe and the buildings of the Danish National Romantic movement. More than six million yellow bricks were used in its construction.

  Among the most striking features of the church is the soaring entrance facade, with its tripartite gable, complete with lower ziggurat pattern and projecting central section. Further Expressionist stepped brick gables run down the sides of the building, interspersed with etiolated windows and topped with pointed arches. The interior is a modern interpretation of the Gothic cathedral, with a long nave and aisles, pointed arcades, and a ceiling height of some 115 feet (35 m). However, in this case the traditional carved stone decorations are replaced by exposed courses of projecting and receding brickwork. Even the two pulpits, one located at the end beneath the tower and one in the choir, are made of brick.

  In 1930, before the building could be completed, Jensen-Klint died. The final works, including the organ front and many of the furnishings, were finished by his son, Kaare Jensen-Klint. The church was finally consecrated in 1940, on the 157th anniversary of Grundtvig’s birth. (Marcus Field)

  Building near historic sites requires a great deal of intuition and respect from the architect and the planners. It necessitates working with, not against, the existing structures, recognizing the past in order to build the new and modern. Such respectfulness is exemplified in the Nordea Headquarters, completed in 1999. The building complex consists of six glass wings, each six stories high. They are positioned at a 90-degree angle to the inner harbor front. On the south side of Copenhagen, away from the harbor, is the main entrance to the bank—a U-shaped building clad with sandstone. It makes quite a contrast to the other buildings, which are light and almost weightless, not only because of the glass facades but also because all the glass sections have been enclosed and raised off the ground by frameworks of copper. At night, when lights wrap around and underneath the structure, the buildings appear to float above the ground, becoming a part of the canal rather than something solid and concrete. The anchor here, however, is the U-shaped building, which brings us back on land and within proximity of the late Baroque church. Such a meeting between the sumptuous Baroque style and the high-tech, polished bank stimulates a vibrant, architectural dialogue across the centuries. (Signe Mellergaard Larsen)

  The overall purpose of projects taken on by the National Secretariat for Urban Regeneration in Denmark is to transform unsuccessful developments in urban areas. One such project is the Kvarterhuset (the Quarter House), completed in 2001, which is located in southwest Copenhagen.

  The building is a four-story extension of industrial premises dating from 1880, and today it includes a public library, a café, a school, and meeting rooms. A large, open foyer connects to the library, and a white spiral staircase and white footbridges lead the public to the other floors as well as to the neighboring buildings. The glass box extension is lifted off the ground by leaning pillars of concrete, giving a sense of the magical. In the foyer, plywood with thermo glass panels set in a framework of pinewood create a light and airy environment.

  The Kvarterhuset has a rejuvenating effect in an area where rather heavy and dark brick buildings create a somber atmosphere. It is an open and inviting building, throwing light into the street and onto the buildings that tower two or three stories above it. Its presence imbues a sense of optimism in those who enter it for schooling, leisure time, and sports activities. The Kvarterhuset also functions as a much-needed community center in a built-up urban area where there are few outside public spaces for local inhabitants to meet. (Signe Mellergaard Larsen)

  Tietgen Hall of ResidenceIn the Øresund area, in the south of Copenhagen, modern buildings have rapidly sprung up since the turn of the 21st century. Many of these buildings have similar architectural traits—specifically, angular and hard-edged outlines. By contrast, the Tietgen Hall of Residence displays organic curves and dimensions to its neighborhood. The building provides accommodation for up to 360 students. Five detached units, each of six residential stories, form a circle around a communal courtyard. The sections are joined by towers of stairs and elevators, making it possible to walk from one unit to another. The residential parts of the building are placed in the outer sections of the circular unit, whereas the communal rooms, such as the study spaces and kitchen facilities, face the courtyard. All the rooms are organized in structural modules that vary in depth and size, creating a dynamic and vibrant environment. The overall facade of the building thus appears asymmetrical, which makes a fine contrast to the balanced, rotund shape of the structure.

  This building’s architects, Boje Lundgaard and Lene Tranberg, received a prize known in Denmark as the Træprisen (the Wood Award) because of their innovative use of timber. Wood breaks up the hard concrete framework of the Tietgen Hall of Residence, blending the artificial with the natural in a pleasant and harmonious way. Situated close to the University of Copenhagen, this building strengthens the bond between knowledge and the students’ everyday life. (Signe Mellergaard Larsen)

Comments
Welcome to zpostcode comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Recommend >
What is investment banking? Connecting investors to corporate growth
     Investment banking is a business that facilitates capital markets and the larger financial community. Investment bankers connect investors to companies that are raising money by issuing stocks and bonds. Most investment banks also offer broker-dealer services to help customers—often institutional clients—buy and sell securities, and they may also provide businesses with advice on mergers, acquisitions, and other strategic transactions....
Gilles Brassard
  Born: April 20, 1955, Montreal, Quebec, Canada (Show more) Gilles Brassard (born April 20, 1955, Montreal, Quebec, Canada) is a Canadian computer scientist known for his work in quantum cryptography and quantum teleportation. Brassard received bachelor’s (1972) and master’s (1975) degrees in computer science from the University of Montreal and then a doctorate (1979) in theoretical computer science from Cornell...
How different types of banks operate in the financial system
     Banks are financial intermediaries that collect money from people who have excess funds and use it to provide loans and financing to individuals, businesses, and governments. They also help customers conduct financial transactions, often through an affiliated broker-dealer and/or wealth management division.   Broadly speaking, banks in the United States fall into two categories: commercial banks and investment banks. Commercial...
black caiman
  black caiman, (Melanosuchus niger), large caiman species best known as being the largest predator in the Amazon River basin and the largest member of the alligator family (Alligatoridae). The species is found in wetlands, flooded savannas, rivers, and other freshwater environments in northern South America, from eastern Ecuador eastward to southeastern Colombia, Guyana, French Guiana, and northern Brazil and southward...
Information Recommendation
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
  A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, coming-of-age novel by Betty Smith that was published in 1943 and is considered to be a classic of children’s literature and American literature. Centering on Francie Nolan, a working-class girl growing up in Brooklyn, New York, the novel offers a deeply moving view of Francie’s aspirations to finish school and become a writer. It also...
list of pharaohs of ancient Egypt
  Pharaohs were kings of ancient Egypt. Though the term pharaoh referring to the king was not used in ancient Egypt until the New Kingdom period (c. 1539–c. 1077 bce), it is now used for all kings of ancient Egypt on the basis of its use in the Hebrew Bible. The list below includes Egyptian rulers and their regnal years from...
Fat Man
  Also called: Mark III (Show more) Fat Man, atomic bomb dropped on the city of Nagasaki, Japan, on August 9, 1945. Its use was the second and last time that nuclear weapons were employed in war. Fat Man was a plutonium implosion-type bomb. It had a spherical core of plutonium-239 surrounded by high explosives, the force of which pushed inward...
Sid Vicious
  Byname of: John Simon Ritchie (Show more) Born: May 10, 1957, London, England (Show more) Died: February 2, 1979, Manhattan, New York, U.S. (aged 21) (Show more) Sid Vicious (born May 10, 1957, London, England—died February 2, 1979, Manhattan, New York, U.S.) was an English bass player and singer who achieved fame as a member of the punk rock band...
There’s Nothing Here!
...
AI-powered 'digital twin' of Earth could make weather predictions at super speeds
Scientists have created a digital twin of our planet that can be used to predict weather far faster than traditional services. The technology could help prevent some of the catastrophic impacts of disasters such as typhoons and flooding. The intensive data-crunching system could also give us a more detailed view of the future effects of climate change and reveal clues...
Saina Nehwal
  Born: March 17, 1990, Hisar, Haryana state, India (Show more) Saina Nehwal (born March 17, 1990, Hisar, Haryana state, India) is the first Indian badminton player to win an Olympic medal. During the 2012 Olympic Games in London, Nehwal captured the women’s singles bronze medal. She has won more than 20 titles internationally and was a recipient of the prestigious...
There’s Nothing Here!
...