Christianshavns Kanal
Encyclopedia
Christianshavns Kanal is a canal
in the Christianshavn
neighbourhodd of Copenhagen
, Denmark
. Running northeast-southwest, it bisects the neighbourhood along its length. To the north it connects to Trangraven, the canal which separates Christianshavn from Holmen
; to the south it makes an angular break and empties in the main harbour a little north of the Langebro
bridge. At the middle, Christianshavns Kanal is crossed by Børnehusbroen. This bridge is part of Torvegade, the main thoroughfare of Christianshavn, connecting the city centre across Knippelsbro
to the northwest to Amager
the southeast. The only other bridge traversing the canal is Snorrebroen, located further north.
Christianshavns Kanal is noted for its bustling sailing community with numerous house
- and sailboat
s, particularly in the northern half of the canal.
Over- in the street names derrives from the German
word Ufer, meaning shore
or bank
. "oven vandet" and "neden vandet" refers to the two halves which Christianshavn is cut into by the canal, "neden vandet" being the inner (City Side) side of the neighbourhood and "oven vandet" being the outer (Amager Side) side . The streets date back to the original foundation of Christianshavn by Christian IV
.
of Christianshavn, founded by wholesaler Ulf Brøste.
The collections are exhibited in a building from 1785, known as Potters Gård (English: Potter's House). It is named for Thomas Potter who was born in Edinburgh
, Scotland
and arrived in Copenhagen as a young man. He received permission to open a foundry
and became a pioneer within his field, producing "iron pots in all shapes" as well as nails, anchor
s and bullet
s. Part of his production was exported to the East
and West Indies
. Devastated by grief after losing two wives, he sold his property in 1790.
for boys, in 1776 converted into a naval hospital. Since 1989 the side wing has housed the Royal Danish Naval Museum (Danish: Orlogsmuseet).
s, one in each end, are planned across Christianshavn. To the north, a bridge across the northern mouth of the canal is part of a flight of bridges which is supposed to facilitate the access to the Copenhagen Opera House as well as Holmen in general. At the other end of Christianshavns Kanal, another pedestrian and bicycle bridge, designed by Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson
, is planned.
Canal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
in the Christianshavn
Christianshavn
Christianshavn is an artificial island neighbourhood located in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was founded in the early 17th century by Christian IV as part of his extension of the fortifications of Copenhagen. Originally it was laid out as an independent privileged merchant's town with inspiration from...
neighbourhodd of Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. Running northeast-southwest, it bisects the neighbourhood along its length. To the north it connects to Trangraven, the canal which separates Christianshavn from Holmen
Holmen, Copenhagen
Holmen is an area in central Copenhagen, Denmark. In spite of its name, deceptively in singular, Holmen is a congregation of small islands, forming a north-eastern extension of Christianshavn between Zealand and the northern tip of Amager....
; to the south it makes an angular break and empties in the main harbour a little north of the Langebro
Langebro
Langebro is a bascule bridge across the Inner Harbour of Copenhagen, Denmark, connecting Zealand-side H. C. Andersens Boulevard to Amager-side Amager Boulevard...
bridge. At the middle, Christianshavns Kanal is crossed by Børnehusbroen. This bridge is part of Torvegade, the main thoroughfare of Christianshavn, connecting the city centre across Knippelsbro
Knippelsbro
Knippelsbro is a bascule bridge across the Inner Harbour of Copenhagen, Denmark, connecting Børsgade on Zealand-side Slotsholmen to Torvegade on Christianshavn...
to the northwest to Amager
Amager
Amager is a Danish island in the Øresund. The Danish capital, Copenhagen, is partly situated on Amager, which is connected to the much larger island of Zealand by five bridges.-History:...
the southeast. The only other bridge traversing the canal is Snorrebroen, located further north.
Christianshavns Kanal is noted for its bustling sailing community with numerous house
Houseboat
A houseboat is a boat that has been designed or modified to be used primarily as a human dwelling. Some houseboats are not motorized, because they are usually moored, kept stationary at a fixed point and often tethered to land to provide utilities...
- and sailboat
Sailboat
A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails. The term covers a variety of boats, larger than small vessels such as sailboards and smaller than sailing ships, but distinctions in the size are not strictly defined and what constitutes a sailing ship, sailboat, or a...
s, particularly in the northern half of the canal.
Canal side streets
Overgaden oven Vandet and Overgaden neden Vandet are two streets running along each their side of Christianshavns Kanal. The suffixSuffix
In linguistics, a suffix is an affix which is placed after the stem of a word. Common examples are case endings, which indicate the grammatical case of nouns or adjectives, and verb endings, which form the conjugation of verbs...
Over- in the street names derrives from the German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
word Ufer, meaning shore
Shore
A shore or shoreline is the fringe of land at the edge of a large body of water, such as an ocean, sea, or lake. In Physical Oceanography a shore is the wider fringe that is geologically modified by the action of the body of water past and present, while the beach is at the edge of the shore,...
or bank
Bank (geography)
A geographic bank has four definitions and applications:# Limnology: The shoreline of a pond, swamp, estuary, reservoir, or lake. The grade can vary from vertical to a shallow slope....
. "oven vandet" and "neden vandet" refers to the two halves which Christianshavn is cut into by the canal, "neden vandet" being the inner (City Side) side of the neighbourhood and "oven vandet" being the outer (Amager Side) side . The streets date back to the original foundation of Christianshavn by Christian IV
Christian IV of Denmark
Christian IV was the king of Denmark-Norway from 1588 until his death. With a reign of more than 59 years, he is the longest-reigning monarch of Denmark, and he is frequently remembered as one of the most popular, ambitious and proactive Danish kings, having initiated many reforms and projects...
.
Brøstes Samling
Brøstes Samling (English: The Brøste Collection), at oven Gade No. 10, is a display on the local historyLocal history
Local history is the study of history in a geographically local context and it often concentrates on the local community. It incorporates cultural and social aspects of history...
of Christianshavn, founded by wholesaler Ulf Brøste.
The collections are exhibited in a building from 1785, known as Potters Gård (English: Potter's House). It is named for Thomas Potter who was born in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and arrived in Copenhagen as a young man. He received permission to open a foundry
Foundry
A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal in a mold, and removing the mold material or casting after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals processed are aluminum and cast iron...
and became a pioneer within his field, producing "iron pots in all shapes" as well as nails, anchor
Anchor
An anchor is a device, normally made of metal, that is used to connect a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the vessel from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ancora, which itself comes from the Greek ἄγκυρα .Anchors can either be temporary or permanent...
s and bullet
Bullet
A bullet is a projectile propelled by a firearm, sling, or air gun. Bullets do not normally contain explosives, but damage the intended target by impact and penetration...
s. Part of his production was exported to the East
Indies
The Indies is a term that has been used to describe the lands of South and Southeast Asia, occupying all of the present India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and also Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Brunei, Singapore, the Philippines, East Timor, Malaysia and...
and West Indies
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
. Devastated by grief after losing two wives, he sold his property in 1790.
Søkvæsthuset
Søkvæsthuset, at oven Vandet No. 38, was built in 1754 as an orphanageOrphanage
An orphanage is a residential institution devoted to the care of orphans – children whose parents are deceased or otherwise unable or unwilling to care for them...
for boys, in 1776 converted into a naval hospital. Since 1989 the side wing has housed the Royal Danish Naval Museum (Danish: Orlogsmuseet).
Bridge projects
Two new pedestrian and bicycle bridgeFootbridge
A footbridge or pedestrian bridge is a bridge designed for pedestrians and in some cases cyclists, animal traffic and horse riders, rather than vehicular traffic. Footbridges complement the landscape and can be used decoratively to visually link two distinct areas or to signal a transaction...
s, one in each end, are planned across Christianshavn. To the north, a bridge across the northern mouth of the canal is part of a flight of bridges which is supposed to facilitate the access to the Copenhagen Opera House as well as Holmen in general. At the other end of Christianshavns Kanal, another pedestrian and bicycle bridge, designed by Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson
Olafur Eliasson
Olafur Eliasson is a Danish-Icelandic artist known for sculptures and large-scale installation art employing elemental materials such as light, water, and air temperature to enhance the viewer’s experience. In 1995 he established Studio Olafur Eliasson in Berlin, a laboratory for spatial research...
, is planned.