Øl og Marmor

by Kristof Glamann

Danish

Genres: Biography

344 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Kelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

I want to give this book 5 stars but I don’t want to mislead anyone. If you are looking for a book that reads like a historical novel or a story about the rise of the Carlsberg Brewery into prominence or looking for a tabloid style “tell all” about the drama within the Jacobsen family you may find this book lacking. The rift between Carl and his father is only talked of briefly but is acknowledged as central to the character of the man Carl Jacobsen. The family dynamics is covered but this book is about the art collections and architectural contributions of Carl Jacobsen the patron. This book is a well-researched history book and I recommend reading like a text. This book is about Carl Jacobsen and his obsession with art and sculpture that left its mark on Copenhagen in such a way that one cannot understand Copenhagen without some knowledge of this man. This book is not for everyone. Reading about things that you don’t know about is boring so you either have to learn about them or move on. I recommend this book with google as a companion. I spent nine months with this book not only because I get busy and can set aside a book for months, but because I looked up everything. Every palace, church, artist, businessman and landmark. I learned so much about different sculptors, antiquities dealers, archeologists and points of interest in and around Copenhagen that I sort of want to read the book again in an attempt to avoid forgetting it all. I was familiar with Rodin and had certainly heard of Thorvaldsen but Sculptors Carl Bonnesen, Stephan Sinding, Neils Hansen Jacobsen I was unfamiliar with. One of the most interesting people mentioned is Ludwig Pollak the archeologist, look him up even if you don’t read the book. I also looked further into the Wahl-Henius School of Brewery in Chicago where Carl sent his sons. This was before prohibition and it was interesting to learn what the director of the brewing school did during prohibition. For me this book was a task but it was a five start experience because of the wonderful rabbit trails it sent me on. This book also caused me to sort out some of the confusing place names in and around Copenhagen. I now know the difference between Frederiksberg, Frederiksberg Slot, Frederiks Church and Frederiksborg. Yes this is a great book if you put in the effort to learn about this great yet flawed man, his obsession with sculpture, and monuments and the lasting impact he had in Denmark.