The majority of Thorvaldsen’s artworks and art collections were transported from Rome to Copenhagen with ships of the Danish fleet during the years between 1825 and 1845. This article discusses the 1828 shipment, in which a number of commissioned works were transported—unusually—by a private merchant vessel.
This 1828 shipment to Copenhagen of numerous commissioned works by Thorvaldsen has a relatively complex history, involving correspondence among a number of participants over a period of several years. This article begins with an attempt to summarize the entire affair. Following this, a list is provided of the individual artworks included in the shipment.
In 1826, the architect C.F. HansenI was putting the finishing touches on two grand, prestigious structures in Copenhagen—The Church of Our LadyII and Christiansborg PalaceIII—which he had been appointed to rebuild after they had burned down in 1807 and 1794, respectively. Thorvaldsen’s contribution was all that was needed before important events could take place in each building: the dedication of the rebuilt Church, and—in the rebuilt Palace—the wedding of the king’sIV youngest daughter, Princess VilhelmineV, to her betrothed, Prince Frederik (7.VI).
Having learned from the experience of the previous shipmentVII in 1825, when the brig St. Croix turned out to be too small to fit all of Thorvaldsen’s crates, King Frederik 6.VIII decided to send a larger ship—a frigate—to the Mediterranean this time. Thorvaldsen was informedIX about the frigate’s progress in good time, and received long listsX of the artworks that he was desired to produce and include in the shipment. Of these, the most important were ChristXI for the church, and the Alexander FriezeXII, along with two caryatidsXIII, for the palace—all in marble.
When Thorvaldsen had no choice but to reply with the disappointing newsXIV that neither the Christ statue nor the Alexander frieze would be completed in marble in time for the shipment—which was then planned for the spring of 1827—Frederik 6. first chose to postponeXV the frigate’s journey until the spring of 1828. He simultaneously commandedXVI the Building Commissions for both the Church of Our Lady and Christiansborg Palace to obtain a reportXVII by Thorvaldsen listing the artworks that would in fact be complete in time for the frigate’s new 1828 arrival date.
C.F. Hansen was by this point over seventy years old, and expressedXVIII great unease about the possibility of dying before experiencing the completion of his architectural masterworks. Of these, the Church of Our Lady—a “spiritual art museum” of Thorvaldsen’s works—weighed foremost on C.F. Hansen’s mind: he was determined not to dedicate the church without Thorvaldsen’s Christ. As a result, when a new mode of transporting Thorvaldsen’s works suddenly appeared, C.F. Hansen lobbied strongly to take advantage of it, in part by pressing the Building Commissions for both the Church of Our Lady and Christiansborg Palace to join in covering the costs of shipment.
The merchant vessel ThereseXIX was supposed to sail to Tunisia in the autumn of 1827XX, with a cargo of “gifts” for the ruling Bey of TunisXXI. Despite the terminology, these “gifts” were in truth a tribute payment, which Denmark had committedXXII to pay annually in order to avoid pirate attacks on Danish merchant vessels. After completing its mission, the merchant ship would be free to dock at Leghorn in order to be loaded with Thorvaldsen’s artworks.
Both Building Commissions acceptedXXIII this solution, on condition that the shipment be a full one, containing at minimum Thorvaldsen’s Christ (in plaster), the twelve apostles (in plaster), two candelabraXXIV (in marble) and the two caryatids (in marble). The caryatids were crucial, in the view of the Building Commission for Christiansborg Palace, as they were to flank the Palace’s throne on the occasion of the upcoming wedding of Princess Vilhelmine and Prince Frederik on November 1, 1828.
It was now up to Thorvaldsen to ship the completed artworks from Rome to Leghorn. The practical labor involved was undertaken by Thorvaldsen’s assistant, the sculptor Hermann Ernst FreundXXV, who had done the same for previous shipment, in 1825. Freund hired the Italian skipper Francesco LamiXXVI, who shipped 64 crates containing Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Leghorn with his coastal vessel, L’Anime del Purgatorio (The Souls of PurgatoryXXVII). For unknown reasons, however, Lami’s ship departed Rome rather lateXXVIII, namely, just beforeXXIX Christmas Eve. This gave rise to a certain nervousnessXXX in Copenhagen about whether Thorvaldsen’s crates would reach the merchant vessel Therese, then already in quarantineXXXI in Leghorn, on time.
Because of poor weather, the journey from Rome to Leghorn was rather turbulent. On the last stage of the trip, from Elba to Leghorn, the skipper Lami was barely able to dock the ship safely in the harbor without serious damageXXXII.
For Freund himself, the journey was not only physically turbulent, but emotionallyXXXIII tempestuous as well. After ten years in Rome, Freund was to leave his “true home” and travel on to Denmark, where a position as professor of sculpture at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine ArtsXXXIV awaited him. Despite the prospect of a permanent position, however, Freund was disillusioned. He was poor, and in the preceding years he had not obtained the commissions or opportunities for artistic development for which he had hoped. In Rome Freund had stagnated, so to speak, in his role as Thorvaldsen’s assistant, with all of the responsibilities involved—including such troublesome travels as Thorvalden’s courier. Now he was to leave Rome, driven by a “cold and unfeeling power,” and proceed to Denmark, where the only future awaiting him was “the grave.”
Despite both his melancholy and the “driving rains,” Freund did manage to load a total of 70XXXV crates containing Thorvaldsen’s artworks onto the ship on 11.1.1828XXXVI. The downtrodden sculptor was then offered a passenger’s seat on the merchant vessel Therese, but Freund had no wish to return to Denmark “like a barrel of sugarXXXVII.” Instead, Freund chose to continue his journey on foot, on a nine-month tour that brought him to Copenhagen via Florence, Paris, and Berlin.
The merchant vessel Therese sailed from Leghorn in February 1828XXXVIII. It arrived in Copenhagen in April 1828XXXIX—fast enough that it was possible to include Thorvaldsen’s artworks in the Academy of Fine Arts’ exhibitions in 1828XL and 1829XLI.
| Rome-Leghorn: | 21.12.1827-4.1.1828XLII |
| Departed Leghorn: | February 1828XLIII |
| Arrived Copenhagen: | April 1828XLIV |
| Ship: | The merchant vessel ThereseXLV |
| Captain: | SchröderXLVI |
| Crew members: | – |
| Passengers: | – |
| Number of crates: | 70 |
| Shipment manifest: | none |
| Documents related to the shipment: | Transportation of Thorvaldsen’s Artworks to Copenhagen 1828 |
| Chronology: | Transportation of Thorvaldsen’s Artworks to Copenhagen 1828 |
| Overview of all shipments to Copenhagen, 1798-1845: | Transportation of Thorvaldsen’s Artworks to Copenhagen |
| Crate no. | Artwork, Material | Owner | Previous Owner |
| – | Christ, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A82 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| – | Peter, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A86 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| – | Matthew, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A87 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| – | John, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A89 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| – | James the Less, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A91 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| – | Philip, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A93 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| – | Thomas, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A96 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| – | James the Greater, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A98 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| – | Bartholomew, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A99 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| – | Simon Zelotes, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A101 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| – | Paul, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A103 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| – | Jude Thaddaeus, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A105 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| – | Andrew, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A108 | Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen |
| Crate no. | Artwork, Material | Owner | Previous Owner |
| – | Caryatids, marble versions | Destroyed, cf. A55 and A56 | Christiansborg Palace |
| – | Hermann Ernst Freund, MercuryLII, plaster model | Danish National Gallery, inv. no. KMS5001 | – |
| Crate no. | Artwork, Material | Owner | Previous Owner |
| – | Plaster casts of the AeginansLIV restored by Thorvaldsen | Academy of Fine Arts, CopenhagenLV | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | Cupid and the GracesLVI, plaster cast | Presumably identical to A911 | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | Jelizaveta Aleksejevna Osterman-TolstajaLVII, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A167 | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | Dancing Girl, plaster cast | Presumably identical to A179 | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | NightLVIII, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A369 | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | DayLIX, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A370 | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | Cupid with a Swan and Boys picking Fruit, SummerLX, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A411 | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | Cupid and Bacchus, AutumnLXI, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A413 | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | Cupid Revives PsycheLXII, plaster cast | Unknown, presumably cf. A431 | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | Cupid and BacchusLXIII, plaster cast | Unknown, presumably cf. A408 | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | A genio lumen (The Genius of Art and Light)LXIV, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A518 | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | Christ at EmmausLXV, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A562 | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | Alexander the Great in the Triumphal Chariot, ceramic, half-size | Unknown, presumably cf. A504 | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | Two plaster casts modeled after classical candelabraLXVI | Unknown | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| – | Two plaster casts modeled after classical statuesLXVII | Unknown | Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen |
| Crate no. | Artwork, Material | Owner | Previous Owner |
| – | Private itemsLXVIII | Unknown | Hans Christian HoltenLXIX |
| – | Portrait bust of J.C. DahlLXX, plaster cast | Unknown, cf. A229 | J.C. Dahl |
| – | Portrait bust of J.C. DahlLXXI, marble version | Art Museums of Bergen, Norway, cf. A229 | J.C. Dahl |
Last updated 08.02.2017
The Danish architect C.F. Hansen.
The Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen, was rebuilt in neoclassical style during the period 1811-1829. See also the Related Article Commission for the Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen.
Christiansborg Palace was rebuilt in neoclassical style during the period 1803-1828. See also the Related Article Commission for Christiansborg Palace.
The Danish king Frederik 6.
The Danish princess Vilhelmine.
The Danish prince Frederik (7.)
Cf. the Related Article Transportation of Thorvaldsen’s Artworks to Copenhagen 1825.
The Danish king Frederik 6.
Thorvaldsen was informed about the frigate, and the works that it was hoped to transport to Denmark, in the following letters:
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Christ, cf. A82 (in marble)
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Peter, A86
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Matthew, A87
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John, A89
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James the Less, A91
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Philip, A93
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Thomas, A96
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James the Greater, A98
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Bartholomew, A99
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Simon Zelotes, A101
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Paul, A103
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Jude Thaddæus, A105
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Andrew, A108
John the Baptist Preaching:- Two candelabra for the high altar
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Baptismal Angel Kneeling, cf. A112
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The Entry into Jerusalem, cf. A559
The Building Commission for Christiansborg Palace requested:- Two caryatids, cf. A55 and A56
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Alexander the Great’s Entry into Babylon
Christian (8.) Frederik requested:(The Alexander Frieze), cf. A503
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Caroline Amalie, marble version; cf. A754
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Christian (8.) Frederik, marble version; cf. A753
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Caroline Amalie, in plaster or marble; cf. A164
The Academy of Fine Arts requested:Christ, cf. A82, for the high altar, Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen.
Alexander the Great’s Entry into Babylon (the Alexander Frieze), cf. A503, for Christiansborg Palace, Copenhagen.
Caryatids, cf. A55 and A56, for the Christiansborg Palace throne room, Copenhagen.
Thorvaldsen’s disappointing answer can be read in the following letters:
Thorvaldsen was informed about the frigate’s postponement in the following letters:
The royal decree is described in the following letters:
Thorvaldsen provided a response in the following letter:
which is cited in the following letter:
Cf. the letter dated 7.5.1827 from C. F. Hansen to Thorvaldsen.
The Danish merchant vessel Therese, owned by the politician, businessman, and shipowner L. N. Hvidt.
See the Archives’ Thorvaldsen chronology, under 28.10.1827.
The Bey of Tunis, Al-Husayn II ibn Mahmud.
See the Related Article Barbary States and Thorvaldsen.
The following letters indicate that the Building Commissions for Christiansborg Palace and the Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen, jointly paid for the transportation of Thorvaldsen’s works to Copenhagen with the merchant vessel Therese:
Two marble candelabra for the Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen, for which Thorvaldsen had already received a commission. The commission was later cancelled, and fulfilled instead by G. F. Hetsch and Jørgen Dalhoff; cf. the Related Article Commission for the Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen.
The German-Danish sculptor Hermann Ernst Freund.
The Italian skipper Francesco Lami.
According to Catholic teaching, purgatory (Danish skærsilden, the “cleansing fire”) is the location or state in which the souls of the dead are be purified of the last vestiges of guilt for sin before entering God’s kingdom.
Thorvaldsen had been informed of the arrival of the merchant vessel Therese at Leghorn in the following letters:
See the Archives’ Thorvaldsen chronology, under the dates 21.12.1827-4.1.1828.
This nervousness is evident in the following letter:
Namely, quarantine to prevent the spread of contagious diseases like yellow fever, typhus, or cholera, which the crew might have brought with them from the Barbary States.
This “horrible weather” and danger-ridden voyage are described in the following sources:
“With 64 crates as cargo, Freund left his beloved Rome on a coastal vessel, l’Animo del Purgatorio, in order to meet the Danish ship in the harbor at Leghorn; and after fourteen days’ troubled travel, including a violent storm below Elba in which he looked a salty death in the eyes, Freund finally managed, on January 4, 1828, to deliver his valuable cargo to the Danish ship in good condition.”
The information that follows about Freund’s emotional turbulence and melancholy are derived from the following sources:
The Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen.
Of the 70 crates holding Thorvaldsen’s artworks, six had been stored in a Leghorn warehouse since the previous shipment, in 1825.
See the Archives’ Thorvaldsen chronology, under 11.1.1828.
Freund here refers to the Danish trading companies’ extensive transportation of sugar cane from the Danish West Indies to sugar refineries in Danmark.
See the Archives’ Thorvaldsen chronology, under February 1828.
See the Archives’ Thorvaldsen chronology, under April 1828.
Cf. Tillæg til Fortegnelsen over de ved det Kongelige Akademie for de skjönne Kunster i Aaret 1828 offentligen udstillede Kunstværker [Appendix to the List of Artworks Exhibited to the Public by the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in the Year 1828], Copenhagen 1828, cat. nos. 203-214.
Cf. Fortegnelse over de ved det Kongelige Akademie for de skjönne Kunster offentligen udstillede Kunstværker [List of Artworks Exhibited to the Public by the Royal Academy of Fine Arts], Copenhagen 1829, cat. nos. 190-191.
See the Archives’ Thorvaldsen chronology, under the dates 21.12.1827-4.1.1828.
See the Archives’ Thorvaldsen chronology, under February 1828.
See the Archives’ Thorvaldsen chronology, under April 1828.
The Danish merchant vessel Therese, owned by the politician, businessman, and shipowner L. N. Hvidt.
The Danish captain Schröder remains unidentified. The name is found in a letter dated 28.12.1827 from J. C. Ulrich to Thorvaldsen.
See documents related to the topic Transportation of Thorvaldsen’s Artworks to Copenhagen 1828.
Cf. Tillæg til Fortegnelsen over de ved det Kongelige Akademie for de skjönne Kunster i Aaret 1828 offentligen udstillede Kunstværker [Appendix to the List of Artworks Exhibited to the Public by the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in the Year 1828], Copenhagen 1828, cat. nos. 203-214.
Cf. Fortegnelse over de ved det Kongelige Akademie for de skjönne Kunster offentligen udstillede Kunstværker [List of Artworks Exhibited to the Public by the Royal Academy of Fine Arts], Copenhagen 1829, cat. nos. 190-191.
See also the Related Article Commission for the Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen.
See also the Related Article Commission for Christiansborg.
The sculpture was originally intended for inclusion in the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825, but it could not fit into the little brig St. Croix, and so had to be stored in a Leghorn warehouse until the next possible shipment (namely, this one).
See also the Related Article Commission for the Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen.
The “Aeginans” had been stored in a warehouse in Rome since the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825.
See also the Related Article Restoration of the Sculptures from the Temple of Aphaia.
Jf. ‘Registrant over Kunstakademiets gipssamling’, in: Pontus Kjerrman, Bjørn Nørgaard, Jan Zahle, Jens Bertelsen (red.): Spejlinger i gips, København 2004. kat.nr. KG19, KG20, KG253, KG310, KG636, KG637, KG638, KG805, KG1061.
Was originally intended for inclusion in the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825, but could not fit into the little brig St. Croix, and so had to be stored in a Leghorn warehouse until the next possible shipment (namely, this one).
Was originally intended for inclusion in the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825, but could not fit into the little brig St. Croix, and so had to be stored in a Leghorn warehouse until the next possible shipment (namely, this one).
Was presumably intended for inclusion in the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825, but could not fit into the little brig St. Croix, and so had to be stored in a Leghorn warehouse until the next possible shipment (namely, this one).
Was presumably intended for inclusion in the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825, but could not fit into the little brig St. Croix, and so had to be stored in a Leghorn warehouse until the next possible shipment (namely, this one).
Was presumably intended for inclusion in the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825, but could not fit into the little brig St. Croix, and so had to be stored in a Leghorn warehouse until the next possible shipment (namely, this one).
Was presumably intended for inclusion in the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825, but could not fit into the little brig St. Croix, and so had to be stored in a Leghorn warehouse until the next possible shipment (namely, this one).
Was presumably intended for inclusion in the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825, but could not fit into the little brig St. Croix, and so had to be stored in a Leghorn warehouse until the next possible shipment (namely, this one).
Was presumably intended for inclusion in the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825, but could not fit into the little brig St. Croix, and so had to be stored in a Leghorn warehouse until the next possible shipment (namely, this one).
Was presumably intended for inclusion in the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825, but could not fit into the little brig St. Croix, and so had to be stored in a Leghorn warehouse until the next possible shipment (namely, this one).
Was presumably intended for inclusion in the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825, but could not fit into the little brig St. Croix, and so had to be stored in a Leghorn warehouse until the next possible shipment (namely, this one).
These two candelabra in plaster remain unidentified. They are mentioned in the following letter:
The collections of the Academy of Fine Arts include plaster casts of two different sets of Roman candelabra:
The two sets of candelabra appear in various drawings and paintings from the Academy of Fine Arts. They flanked Thorvaldsen’s body when he lay in state in the Academy of Fine Arts’ ceremonial hall; cf. Georg Emil Liberts, Thorvaldsen Lying in State, March 29, 1844, D1748.
These two plaster casts, modeled after classical statues, remain unidentified. They are mentioned in the following letter:
Was originally intended for inclusion in the previous shipment of Thorvaldsen’s artworks to Copenhagen, in 1825, but could not fit into the little brig St. Croix, and so had to be stored in a Leghorn warehouse until the next possible shipment (namely, this one).
The Danish priest Hans Christian Holten.
Cf. the letter dated 16.7.1827 from J.C. Dahl to Thorvaldsen.
Cf. the letter dated 16.7.1827 from J.C. Dahl to Thorvaldsen.