Helsingør Custom House | |
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Toldkammeret | |
The main entrance on Havnepladsen
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General information | |
Architectural style | Historicist |
Location | Helsingør |
Country | Denmark |
Coordinates | 56°2′3″N 12°36′50.32″E / 56.03417°N 12.6139778°ECoordinates: 56°2′3″N 12°36′50.32″E / 56.03417°N 12.6139778°E |
Construction started | 1887 |
Inaugurated | 16 November 1891 |
Client | Danish state |
Owner | Kulturværftet |
Design and construction | |
Architect | Johan Daniel Herholdt |
Helsingør Custom House (Danish: Helsingør Toldkammer) is a former custom house situated next to Helsingør station in central Helsingør, Denmark. Completed in 1891 to a Historicist design by Johan Daniel Herholdt, it replaced Øresund Custom House, which had played a central role in Denmark's collection of Sound Dues before it was demolished in connection with an expansion of the harbour in the 1860s. The new custom house remained in use until 1976 and is today part of the Kulturværftet, a nearby cultural centre, hosting smaller concerts, exhibitions and other events.
The first custom house in Helsingør was called Øresund Custom House, reflecting its role in the collection of Sound Dues from all ships that passed through the Øresund.
In 1681, the custom house moved to a Late Medieval building on Strandgade which was acquired from a bookkeeper named Claus Liime. In 1737-39, Niels Eigtved, Lauritz de Thurah and Philip de Lange—three of Denmark's most significant architects of the time—all created design proposals for a new custom house. In the end, none of their designs were used when a new custom house was built on the corner of Sophie Brahes Gade and Strandgade in 1740–42. The building was instead designed by the otherwise unknown architect N in a mixture of Baroque and Rococo style. It measured approximately 25 by 11 metres and was topped by a Mansard roof. The central three-bay projection was topped by a triangular pediment with Christian VI's gilded monogram. The relief and the building's other sandstone decorations were executed by Jacob Fortling. Below the triangular pediment was an architrave and frieze with the inscription 'Øresunds Toldkammer Anno 1740 ("Øresund's Custom House Anno 1740"). The building contained a large central hall flanked by offices on each side.