Martinus Rørbye: “Torvet in Amalfi” (The square in Amalfi). Signed M. Rørbye Roma 1840. Oil on canvas. 66 x 89. Sold in 2021 for a hammer price of DKK 2,500,000.

Golden Age Art Wanted for Themed Auction!

In December, we’ll be holding a Live Auction and an Online Auction entitled “Danish Golden Age 1801–1864 – World-Class Art in a Time of Crisis”. At the auctions, we’ll be marking an epochal period in Danish art history, when the cultural scene was flourishing like never before, despite the major national crises. We are currently on the lookout for works for the themed auctions.

The “Danish Golden Age 1801–1864 – World-Class Art in a Time of Crisis” is the culmination of a close collaboration between Bonhams’ global network of auction houses.

World Class Art

That this is world-class art is unquestionable. We’re finding that Danish Golden Age art is in demand like never before at our auctions. Both private collectors and the world’s leading museums including the Louvre in Paris, the National Gallery in London and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York have acquired Golden Age works from Bruun Rasmussen in recent years.

C. W. Eckersberg: “Akvædukten i Arcueil” (The aqueduct in Arcueil). 1812. Signed E. Oil on canvas. 32.5 x 40.5. Sold in 2020 for a hammer price of DKK 5,600,000.

Martinus Rørbye: “Et stort skib under kalfatring ved Frederikshavn” (A large ship being caulked at Frederikshavn). Signed M.R. 1847. Oil on cardboard. 37 x 55. Sold in 2023 for a hammer price of DKK 1,200,000.

Wilhelm Bendz: The artist’s self-portrait. Signed V:BENDZ 13/10 1826. Oil on canvas. 47 x 38. Sold in 2024 for a hammer price of DKK 1,400,000.

Christen Købke: “Nedgang til et køkken” (Stairs to a kitchen). C. 1845. Unsigned. Oil on paper pasted on canvas. 37.5 x 34. Sold in 2022 for a hammer price of DKK 1,900,000.

A Flourishing Cultural Scene

The Danish Golden Age is a period in the first half of the 19th century when culture and science were flourishing at a time otherwise marked by one major political disaster after another. In 1801, England forced Denmark out of neutrality with the Battle of Copenhagen, bombing Copenhagen and taking over the Danish fleet in 1807. In 1813, Denmark went bankrupt, in 1814 the country was forced to cede Norway, and in 1864 we suffered a catastrophic defeat against Prussia.

Most people in the art world today agree that the Danish Golden Age was one of the most important periods in 19th-century European art. Here, world-class art was created by a number of artists with a broad vision, educated at the internationally recognised Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen. The period gave rise to prominent names such as C.W. Eckersberg, Christen Købke, Martinus Rørbye, Johan Thomas Lundbye, Wilhelm Marstrand, Constantin Hansen and P.C. Skovgaard.

P.C. Skovgaard: Cloud study. Signed Monogram Ti[rsdag] 11 juni 1844. Oil on paper. Sheet size 19.5 x 24. Sold in 2022 for a hammer price of DKK 850,000.

Johan Thomas Lundbye: “Blegeplads ved herregården Vognserup” (The bleaching ground at Vognserup Manor). Signed in monogram 1845. Oil on canvas. 48 x 64. Sold in 2021 for a hammer price of DKK 850,000.

Fritz Petzholdt: “En kilde med en fordums offentlig vaskeplads nær formentlig nær Olevano” (A spring near a former public washing site, probably near Olevano). Unsigned. Oil on paper. 22 x 30. Sold in 2020 for a hammer price of DKK 420,000.

C. W. Eckersberg: “Parti af Marmorpladsen” (Scene on Marmorpladsen). 1830s. Unsigned. Pen and ink wash. Sheet size 24.5 x 35. Sold in 2022 for a hammer price of DKK 660,000.

Sell Your Golden Age Art at Auction!

We have just launched the search for paintings and drawings by all the famous Golden Age artists who contributed to the story of this important period in Danish art. If you have Golden Age art that you are considering selling at auction, we would very much like to hear from you with a view to a valuation carried out by the market’s most competent art specialists.

The auction will be marketed across the network’s many platforms and communication channels to thousands of passionate collectors and art enthusiasts worldwide. This allows us to achieve the market’s highest hammer prices, benefiting you as a seller.