København_1925

(The Palace Church), with its green dome, and behind this again Thorvaldsens Museum, which contains Bertel Thorvaldsen’s works in the origi­ nal or casts. The four wings of the building enclose a court with the master’s grave in the centre, thus forming a mausoleum over Denmark’s most famous sculptor. Now, as in the earliesl times, Slotsholmen is still an island, separated from the other quarters of the town on the one side by the harbour channel and on the others by a canal which curves pic- turesquely along its stone quays and moss grown wall-work foundations. No less than eight bridges, including the beautiful old marble bridge adorned with medallions, lead in all directions into the city, in the heart of which it lies, so to speak, moored with its precious cargo of historical buildings and national memorials. A personal consideration of these memorials will facilitate the acquiring of the feeling peculiar to and permanently pervading this particular part of the town, — and which is further enhanced by the immediate surroundings ( »Prinsens Palais « with the Oldnordisk Museum and Collection of an- tiques) on the inner side of the canals, and the picturesque part of the town Christianshavn on the opposite side of the harbour channel, all of which cannot but create, both in natives and re- flective strangers, a never-to-be-forgotton impres- sion in which this aspect of Copehagen is, so to speak, elevated into the sphere of esthetic delights. Thus we construe the picture outwardly trans- mitted to us whilst at Amagertorv we dwell a few moments on the scene opening to us. Before long the gårdener wives from Amager (Copenhagen’s flower- and kitchen garden) will begin to display their hanging gardens of flowers for sale on Hoj- broplads, and on the quay at Gammel Strand the fisher-wives from Skovshoved offer the live catch of their fishermen from the preceding night in the Sound. A motley and loud-voiced folk and market life develops here around the plinth of the equestrian statue of Bishop Absalon. Far from effacing the historical picture or ren ­ dering it transient, the present day life as here pre­ sented, quite the contrary tends rather to empha- size and vivify it, as it is practically the same traffic which is carried on, the same interests pursued, as those which Bishop Absalon almost 800 years ago was the first to protect against mole- station and attack on the open shores, where now these markets and quays stand. W ith this in mind the statue of Absalon, the Bishop in cuirass and morion, seerns to acquire added life, as he gazes in righteous pride from liis rearing stallion out over 32

Der Hu li de

Runde Taarn. — Round Tower. — La Tour Ronde. Turm.

delsliv vil udfolde sig omkring Soklen af Biskop Absalons Rytterstatue. Saa langt fra at udviske eller forflygtige det h i­ storiske Billede vil disse Nutidens Foreteelser tværtimod understrege og forstærke det — thi det er jo næsten uforandret den samme Færd, der øves, de samme Interesser, der røgtes som dem, Bi­ skop Absalon for næsten 800 Aar siden var den første til at beskytte mod fremmed Overlast og An­ greb paa de aabne Strande, hvor der nu er Torve og Kajer. Med dette in mente er det ogsaa som om Statuen af Absalon, Bispen i Brynje og Jernhat, faar forøget Liv —: med berettiget Stolthed skuer han fra sin stejlende Hingst ud over al denne Handel og Tummel, over mod Slotsholmen, hvor han byggede »Køpmannæhafn«s første Værn og skabte Betingelserne for hele Byens senere Ud­ vikling. I adskillige Sekler holdtes Byen dog indenfor meget snævre Rammer. Bortset fra Anlæggelsen af Bydelen Christianshavn, der fandt Sted i Begyn­ delsen af det 17. Aarhundrede, fik København først sin virkelige betydningsfulde Udvidelse midt i det 19. Aarhundrede, da de seneste Volde og Fæst­ ningsanlæg fra Renæssancetiden blev sløjfede.