Nysø
Manor House near Præstø, Sjælland
1673

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Nysø by Præstø Bay was built 1671-73 for the local functionary Jens Lauridsen. It was the first country house in Denmark in the baroque style, replacing the earlier Danish renaissance style. The inspiration came from Holland and the architect was probably Ewert Janssen, who it is believed was also responsible for Charlottenborg in Copenhagen shortly afterwards. Nysø is especially known for its role in the Danish cultural Golden Age of the early to mid 1800s when baron Hendrik Stampe and his wife Christine played host to many famous writers and artists, including Hans Christian Andersen and the sculptor Thorvaldsen. The latter spent much of his last six years here (1838-44), where he had a studio in the house and in the garden (the white structure in the picture above).   

The house consists of a main wing of eleven bays and wings on the north side with the main entrance between. The materials are red brick, sandstone, hipped red tile roof and a granite plinth as the foundation. There are three-bay central projections on the north and south sides, each decorated with four Ionic pilasters of sandstone on high plinths. They support triangular pediments under a copper roof. The north side is additionally decorated with garlands and festoons. Here there is also a clockwork consisting of two figures in peasant costume each with a bell that strikes the hour and the quarter hour respectively.

The house is beautifully situated, surrounded by a broad moat on three sides and a large courtyard to the north in a three-sided symmetrical arrangement of estate buildings. These were added in the 1780s when the moat on the north side was filled in.  The farm buildings are colour-washed in red and a yellow classical portal in the centre forms the entrance to the courtyard. The red-brick buildings which extend the two wings to the south are the administration buildings. That on the east side (last picture above) now contains the Thorvaldsen Collection at Nysø, which includes many of the works completed by the sculptor during his time here. Among the few examples shown below is Thorvaldsen's self-portrait completed in 1839.

"Vølunds Værksted" (Wayland's Smithy), Thorvaldsen's studio in the garden, which Baroness Stampe had built to allow the sculptor to create his self-portrait in full size.

Hans Christian Andersen was also a frequent guest at Nysø - more about his visits here and at other manor houses.