Comment on 22.10.1808
Thorvaldsen was to contribute numerous works for Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen, which was being rebuilt during these years after the fire in 1794. It is quite conceivable that, apart from Thorvaldsen’s obvious talents as a sculptor, this tactical present of the baptismal font to the Schimmelmann family was instrumental in Thorvaldsen’s involvement in the work. Thus, Charlotte Schimmelmann wrote a letter to her brother, Herman Schubart, with the following passage which was sent on to Thorvaldsen in Schubart’s letter of 26.12.1808: “My husband and I rightly recognize his noble gesture towards us. Count Christian Reventlow assured me yesterday that they are using him and are going to use him even more for our reborn palace [i.e. Christiansborg Palace]. He will be given great statues to execute, bas-reliefs and more; and you, my dear brother, may rely on Reventlow’s enthusiasm for your friend Thorwaldsen, in whom Hansen also takes a great interest. This artist certainly deserves the gratitude of his country [...]”. See the related article about the Commission for Christiansborg about this.
According to her brother Herman Schubart’s letter of 26.7.1805, Charlotte Schimmelmann had already at this time played a not unimportant role in Thorvaldsen’s appointment as professor at the Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen in 1805, see the Thorvaldsen Chronology.
For more about her and her husband Ernst Schimmelmann’s influence in Danish cultural life, see their biographies.
Last updated 27.10.2015