Copenhagen Amber Museum

Copenhagen Amber Museum
Industry Jewellery, Retail, Craftsmanship, Amber Jewellery, Gold and silversmiths, Museum, Amber Museum
Founded 1994
Founder Einer Fehrn
Headquarters Copenhagen
Area served
Worldwide
Key people

Jens Heimburger (Owner)

Lars Bladt (Group CEO)

Pia Fons (Managing Director)
Owner House of Amber
The museum seen from Kongens Nytorv

Copenhagen Amber Museum (Danish: Ravmuseet) is a museum on Kongens Nytorv in central Copenhagen, Denmark. It is owned by House of Amber.

Copenhagen Amber Museum is one of the most recognised amber museums in the world.

The museum is located in Kanneworffs House, a charming old house dating back to 1606, which is one of the oldest houses in Copenhagen.

The museum takes you on an exciting journey through the fascinating history of amber. The museum holds an impressive collection of amber antiques and artifacts, including a wide array of entombed insects from prehistoric times.

House of Amber and Copenhagen Amber Museum are also delighted to present our visitors to the largest piece of amber in the world. The piece became enlisted in Guinness World of Records on June 1, 2015 and weighs 104.72 pounds (47.5 kg). The amber piece was found in the Dharmasraya region in West Sumatra in 2014 and is around 15-25 million years old.

The high quality of our amber jewellery is guaranteed by the museum, which was founded and run by some of the most knowledgeable amber experts in the world.

Building

The museum is located in one of Copenhagen’s oldest and most charming houses. It is placed at the beautiful square Kongens Nytorv right at the entrance of Nyhavn. Kanneworffs House was built in 1606, even before Kongens Nytorv was founded and the channel of Nyhavn was dug. At that time the population of Copenhagen was only 12,000 people.

Its current appearance is largely due to an adaptation in the 1780s which added an extra floor and the Mansard roof. The building consists of three bays on Bredgade, four bays on Kongens Nytorv and two bays on Store Strandstræde. Another adaptation in 1904 moved the entrance to Bredgade.[1]

Through the years the house has been inhabited by all kinds of people from barbers, tobacco spinners, carpenters, grocers and even the lackey of a noble count. In 1836 wool and cloth grocer Lars Kanneworff bought the house and during the next century it housed one of Copenhagen’s most exclusive and modern tailor establishments.

Today the sign Kanneworffs House on the front has been replaced with Ravhuset (House of Amber), and while enjoying the world of amber, visitors can breathe in the fascinating history of this more than 400 year old house.

s.[2]

The Museum Collection

At the museum one can learn about how amber was formed more than 30 million years ago and why we today can find it washed up on Danish coasts. In the exhibition stands one can see different types of amber from all over the world and see how the amber is used. One will also have the opportunity to get an insight into the significance of amber at different stages throughout history.

The fisherman's collection: Denmark’s biggest amber find in modern times can be found in the Copenhagen Amber Museum. In June 2010, a Danish fisherman caught one of Denmark’s largest pieces of amber ever found. He caught the piece in his net on a fishing trip far out to sea. He found it hard to believe his own eyes when he pulled in his net that June morning, for in the net lay the biggest piece of amber he had ever found. The amber rock weighed 4,125 gr., and was the largest piece of amber found in Denmark since 1767.

One of the main attractions of the museum is the collection of more than 100 pieces of amber with inclusions of insects and plants. Magnifying glasses, enables the visitor to observe the more than 30 million year-old insects and plants closely.

Copenhagen Amber Museum also presents its visitors to the world's largest piece of amber, which weighs 47.5 kg.

See also

House of Amber

References

  1. "Kongens Nytorv 2". indenforvoldene.dk. Retrieved 2013-09-29.
  2. "House of Amber - Copenhagen Amber Museum". Wonderful Copenhagen. Retrieved 2013-09-29.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 3/27/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.