Aarhus, Denmark is a special city in its own right - but inside the city exists an incredible open-air museum that showcases historical buildings collected from around the country in the setting of a functional town with merchants, carpenters, the mayor, and townsfolk. It first opened in 1914 with the Mayor's house and has since grown to encompass time periods from the 1600's to 2014! The buildings are moved into place, brick by brick, and then restored to their past functions.
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| A peaceful morning before the town comes to life |
The town is divided into periods of time. You can enter many of the buildings and explore. I first wandered the most modern street and admired the sunlit view from the kitchen of a family with two children in 2014. I watched an authentic television program from that time period in the living room.
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Time periods are clustered together in the town -
Note the conveniently labeled streets |
The 1945-1974 street also houses the "Aarhus Story" - billed as a 1200-year journey through the city's history, from Medieval times to modernity. It helps set the stage for the time periods explored more thoroughly in this unique museum. The map you receive at entry also guides you through the different time periods and provides more information about each place.
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| Map of Den Gamle By from their website |
At the end of the top street (near the windmill in the map) I entered the Mintmaster's Mansion focused on the life of the Mintmaster's family there in the 18th century. The building history is from 1683 to 2009 when it was moved to the museum, and there are meticulous displays in the attic on how they restored or recreated different time periods - from stairway railings to wallpaper to painted ceilings. It is an homage to all the restorationists that devoted years to honoring both the bones and the frills of this historical building.
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| The wig room in the mansion |
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| Painted birds on a ceiling in the mansion |
My favorite parts of Den Gamle By were the craftsmen/women displaying their talents. I was lucky on the day I visited as there are not always active crafters on site. I was able to watch the blacksmith forge a drawer handle, using period tools and a hand-operated bellows for the coal fire.
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A young blacksmith at work
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I also watched a carpenter using a wood lathe to make a classic 2-sided cookie cutter.
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Carpenter using a treadle operated wood lathe
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| And then hand-finishing the cookie cutters |
And I listened to the tile worker explained how he sourced old tiles (e.g. 160 years old) to replace even older damaged tiles for the roofs of the buildings in the museum.
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| All the damaged tiles get replaced by "newer" tiles high up on the roof! |
The museum employs folks (and also has volunteers) that have stories to tell visitors about their jobs and life during the time period. This is a kitchen maid from the merchant's house in 1865. She was sweeping the kitchen and offered me warm porridge she had made that morning!
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| The Merchant's kitchen maid in 1865 |
One of the fun stories from that day was in the soap shop from 1927. I met the granddaughter of the original owner of the shop she was now volunteering in! She had spent much time with her grandmother in the shop. And you can still buy lemon soap and more here now.
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| The granddaughter (right) grew up in this soap store |
I spent four hours in the Old Town and could have spent longer! For gardeners, there are a variety of gardens to explore plus the town is right next to the botanic garden. For builders and engineers there are displays on different joints used in construction. For historians, you can learn about how the guilds worked in medieval times and how Denmark's legislation on human rights evolved over time. It's a museum that offers more than just a simple walk through time.
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Some of the hipper transportation
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Some of the older buildings
And if, after all that, you need a nap - maybe you can displace this poor man from his pull-out bed and catch a few well-earned zzz's. His snoring was quite believable!
 | | A great design for a hide-away bed! |
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