COPENHAGEN, May 22 (Xinhua ) -- Rosenborg Castle in Copenhagen contains not only the history of the Danish kings, it also has a treasury with golden crowns and various sets of priceless crown jewels only to be used by the queen.
Close to one of the busiest streets in Copenhagen, visitors see the towers of Rosenborg Castle as an oasis in the big city. In the surrounding park called the King's Garden, people enjoy spring in Denmark while tourists flock to see the castle and get a sense of how Danish kings lived with their families more than 300 years ago.
Rosenborg Castle is today considered among the top 10 attractions in Copenhagen.
Rosenborg was originally meant as a summer cottage for King Christian the Fourth outside the city of Copenhagen. In fact, the area was outside the city's walls when it was built, even if it is very close to downtown today.
"The commissioner of the castle was King Christian the Fourth, who took the throne in 1596. A young man with a lot of energy, one of the first things he did around Copenhagen was to expand the city and buy up land," Peter Kristiansen, curator from the Rosenborg Museum, told Xinhua.
"With all the new land on hand he built a castle for himself. The construction started in 1606 and was finished in its first stage a year after, but was very quickly prolonged and made higher so it was finished almost in the shape we know today in 1625."
Christian the Fourth, probably the best-known king in Danish history, built several of the best-known buildings in Copenhagen such as the round tower and the old stock exchange with its characteristic dragon tale spire.
However, he was frequently at war with neighbors in Sweden. Christian the Fourth's wars against Sweden almost caused Denmark to go bankrupt. As a result, he never accomplished his goal of being the greatest Nordic king ever and died in 1648 at Rosenborg.
After his death, three generations of kings still used the castle as a summer residence after which Rosenborg was only used for special occasions.
"After the kings gave up living here in the 1720s, they started to collect things here. Around 1800, the castle was filled with memorabilia and it was decided to convert it into a museum that opened in 1838," said Kristiansen.
The Rosenborg Museum was one of the first public museums in Copenhagen at all with the purpose to show the story of the Danish kings from the time of Christian the Fourth to present time.
One can spend hours gazing at the beautiful furniture and paintings tastefully arranged to give visitors the best possible impression of the royal history of Denmark.
Going down to the treasury in the cellar of the castle and through the heavy 15-inch steel doors makes one feel they are a part of a fairytale by H.C. Andersen.
Early in the 18th and 19th century, the crown jewels stayed in a box under the queen's bed. But in 1900, it was decided to have them protected and exhibited at Rosenborg.
"We have four sets of crown jewels that can be used by the queen and only by the queen. They are not private property, so the queen cannot decide to lend them to the crown princess. Neither can she sell them or separate them," Kristiansen said.
There are two sets with diamonds, one set with diamonds and emeralds and one set with pearls and diamonds and rubies, and it is up to the queen when she uses them. However, she always wears one of them at the new year's eve reception.
"The queen also uses the crown jewels at special state occasions. That could be at visits from head of states from other countries, that could be weddings and jubilees in the family and so on, but normally they are used around three times a year," Kristiansen said.
Besides the crown jewels, the treasury contains two golden crowns decked with diamonds and pearls. Thanks to the collections, visitors can get a close look and just for a moment dream about how it would feel to wear royal jewelry.
10 million-yuan bra shines in Shengyang, North China
Feedback
RSS
