Glyptoteket

Saturday morning I had woken up early and decided I wanted to go explore, rather than just hang about the house all day waiting for everyone else to wake up. I have realised there are still so many places in Copenhagen I haven’t visited, and this day I wanted to visit Glyptoteket. I cannot believe I had never been there before!

The Glyptotek was founded by Carl Jacobsen and his wife Ottilia. Carl Jacobsen was the owner and director of the New Carlsberg brewery, an inventive brewer, successful businessman and art collector.

Carl Jacobsen enjoyed contemporary art, antiquity, design, architecture, history, archeology and botany. And believe me, his collection is impressive!

Sculpture was at the heart of Jacobsen's collection. His investment in contemporary French and Danish artists, and fascination with the art and culture of the ancient Mediterranean, helped create this world-class collection. I really wasn't aware how much there was to see here.

I found a familiar sculpture that we have previously showcased at LAD in a bronze version - the Laocoön.

It is no wonder that Glyptoteket is Scandinavia's leading antiquities museum. I spent hours wandering around in the rooms exploring treasures from Ancient Rome, Greece and Egypt:

Met another old friend - Gudea!

I didn't just admire the collection, but also the museum space. The first part of the Glyptotek was inaugurated here in 1897, and in 1906 an extension was built as well as the Winter Garden. Since then, several extensions have been made, resulting in a labyrinth of galleries.
Just look at this outlook:

Or this one:

This building housing the collections of Roman, Greek and Egyptian art was designed to reference the architecture of the ancient world.

One of my favourite parts - the Winter Garden.

The latest extension to to the Glyptotek was added in 1996, and it houses temporary exhibitions. I was so lucky that the current temporary exhibition was about 'French Art 1870-1925'. Very suitable considering our own Post-Impressionism exhibition coming up next month at the LAD.

I could enjoy another encounter with Litte Dancer of Fourteen Years, that I had previously seen (another version of) in Athens 2020.

Paul Gauguin:

Claude Monet:

Beautiful details:

This building also houses a roof terrace, where you get amazing views of central Copenhagen, and Tivoli:

At one stage, I had to take a little break. Even though it was the most expensive cup of coffee and carrot cake I have had in a long time, I did get to enjoy this beautiful view from the museum café!

I could also enjoy the Winter Garden and its iconic dome from above, when visiting the second floor and the temporary exhibition about Kai Nielsen - Born of Everyday Life:

Kai Nielsen's works can be seen in a number of public spaces in Denmark. He was fascinated by the human body.

Another temporary exhibition dealt with 'French Art 1800-1870', always interesting.

One part of the museum was dedicated to an exhibition about the building itself, which, like our LAD, is a true work of art and an extraordinary setting. Here I could explore the evolution of the Glyptotek, via drawings, photos, models and samples of the structures of the building. Very cool!

What a beautiful place! What an amazing morning! I will be back for sure, again and again! Can't wait!