 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Hans van Steenwinckel the Elder" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(August 2010) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Hans van Steenwinckel | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1550 Antwerpen |
| Died | May 1601(1601-05-00) (aged 50–51) Halmstad |
Hans van Steenwinckel the Elder (c. 1550 – 10 May 1601) was aFlemish-Danish architect and sculptor. He worked on a large number of the most important Danish buildings of his time, although the exact scope of his contributions in many cases remains uncertain and much have been demolished or redesigned later. The father ofHans van Steenwinckel the Younger andLorenz van Steenwinckel, he also founded a dynasty of architects and sculptors in Denmark.
Hans van Steenwinckel was born inAntwerp c. 1550. The family fled toEmden,East Frisia, where his father, Lourens van Steenwinckel, became master builder. later city architect, and designed the Town Hall from 1567 onwards, later destroyed duringWorld War II. Hans van Steenwinckel trained under his father, and it is known that he received payment for a design for the Town Hall's stairs and tower in 1574.[citation needed]
In 1578 he travelled to Denmark, most likely as one of the master bricklayers which his countrymanAnthonis van Obbergen invited to Denmark to assist him buildingFrederick II'sKronborg Castle atElsinore.[1] Hans only worked on Kronborg for around a year before he, with royal permission, went on the island ofHven to work for the distinguished astronomerTycho Brahe, who had for life been granted the island by the King as well as funds for the construction of a house and observatory on the premises. Hans van Steenwinckel probably worked both onUraniborg and the subsequentStjerneborg observatory, both of which were demolished after Brahe's death in 1601. From 1585 he lived and worked in Copenhagen but his presence on Hven is documented several times in the 1580s and last in 1590. He studied theoretical renaissance architecture and Brahe taught him both astronomy and geometry.[citation needed]
In 1582 he had been named Royal Building Master and in the 1580s he designedSlangerup Church.[2] He also worked on a number of churches in Copenhagen, includingSt. Peter's Church and possibly also the towers at the Churches of Saint Nicolai and theChurch of the Holy Ghost although this remains uncertain.
Hans van Steenwinckel also built and rebuilt a number of manor houses around the country, includingBerritzgaard,Näsbyholm and Orebygård.
In 1588 the new KingChristian IV appointed him Government Architect and from this date his main task was to modernize the fortifications in many Danish towns and strongholds in Sweden and Norway. These includedBohus Fortress,Varberg,Halmstad andAkershus. He was also responsible for the layout of the completely new town ofChristianopel. According to his gravestone he was himself most proud of the fortifications of Halmstad, where he died in 1601 and is buried at St. Nicolai's Church.[3]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| People | |
