The capital city of Denmark boasts of a number of impressive museums and one of its gems is the David Collection in Kronprinsessegade. Borne from the private art collection of one man – businessman, avid art lover and collector Christian Ludvig David – the museum holds fine and applied art from all over Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries. What it is most known for however is its vast collection of Islamic art that dates from the 7th to the 19th centuries.
The neo-classical building which houses the museum has a history in itself. Overlooking the Rosenborg Castle Garden, it was built at the start of the 19th century and was owned by David’s great-grandfather, J.N. David. When he acquired it a century later, he had it remodeled to accommodate his growing art collection which he also made accessible for public viewing. And in the late 1940s the C.L. David Foundation and Collection was formed and the museum was opened to the public. After his death, the foundation continued work on the museum and growing the collection.
Today the museum has three permanent collections – the Collection of European 18th Century Art, the Collection of Danish Early Modern Art and the Collection of Islamic Art. The collection of Islamic art has been hailed as a comprehensive representation of artistic media of the entire classical Islamic world and one of the largest to be found in Northern Europe. Items include ceramics, Islamic miniature paintings, calligraphy and a wide array of weapons, jewelries and other metalwork. Notable items in the European and Danish art collections include furniture made by David Roentgen and paintings by Danish Golden Age masters such as Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg and Vilhelm Hammershoi.
Admission to the museum is free.
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