National Museum of Denmark/The Royal Collection of Coins and Medals

Frederiksholms Kanal 12
DK-1220 Copenhagen

Entrance to the exhibitions
Ny Vestergade 10
DK-1471 Copenhagen K
Tel: +45 3313 4411 (Tuesday – Friday 10-12)

kundeservice@natmus.dk
natmus.dk

Opening hours

April – October: every day 10-17
November – March: Tuesday – Sunday 10-17 (Monday closed)

  • View from the outside of National Museum of Denmark
    © NatMus
  • The World’s largest struck medal, celebrating Danish victory in the naval battle in Køge Bugt, 1677, gold (in Ka-Ching exhibition)
    © NatMus
  • The coin of Svein Forkbeard, c. AD 1000, the first coin to name a Danish king, silver (in Ka-Ching exhibition
    © NatMus
  • Cow horn with 25-30 coins, part of the Blenstrup Hoard, found in 2017 and handed in to the National Museum as treasure (in Viking exhibition)
    © NatMus
  • Cast bronze coin from the Etruscan town Volterra, from the collection of king Christian 8 (king 1839-1848), before that in the collection of bishop Friederich Münter (1761-1830). RP 400.190
    © NatMus
  • Japanese gold coin from Edo period (1860-1862), gold, gift from Fr. Krebs 1880, acquired by him during his stay in Japan. GP 840.14
    © NatMus
  • Brazilian gold coin from 1646, probably a diplomatic gift to king Frederik 3 (1648-1670). RP 1220.1)
    © NatMus
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Background

The core of the Royal Collection of Coins and Medals goes back to the royal collections of the 17th century, first and foremost the coins and medals in the Royal Chamber of Curiosities, founded by king Frederik 3 around 1650 (https://natmus.dk/historisk-viden/temaer/nationalmuseets-historie/kunstkammeret/). In 1780 it was decided to move the numismatic collection from the Chamber of Curiosities in the Castle of Copenhagen to Rosenborg Castle and merge it with the king’s collection of gold coins and medals kept there. 1780 is today regarded as the birth of the present collection. Inventories of the Chamber of Curiosities as well as catalogues of the numismatic collection produced and published in connection with the transfer provide good information of the collection.

With the establishment of the democratic constitution in 1849 the Royal Collection of Coins and Medals became property of the state. In 1867 it was transferred to its present location in the National Museum.

Collections

Throughout its history the collection has been enriched with donations or bequests of numerous smaller and often very specialized collections typically formed by Danish citizens.

In the 19th and early 20th centuries the collection pursued an active policy of acquiring numismatica. Today most new acquisitions are coins found in Denmark and handed in to the State as treasure.

The collection contains more than 700.000 objects from around the world. The majority of them are coins, but there are also substantial collections of medals and paper money. The focus is on the c. 300.000 coins, medals and bank notes from Denmark and former Danish areas, such as the double monarchy of Denmark-Norway and the duchies (among others Schleswig and Holstein). The collection of around 50.000 Ancient (Greek and Roman) coins is famous for the high quality of the coins. Furthermore, there are important collections of coins from around the world among others Japan (the Bramsen Collection), China, India, Mexico. The library of the Royal Collection of Coins and Medals is probably the most comprehensive one in Northern Europe and includes a number of very rare numismatic books.

Exhibitions

The exhibition ‘Ka-Ching! – show me the money’ opened in the National Museum in September 2022. It features coins, bank notes, coin hoards and other objects from the collection, as well as an interactive game designed to illustrate various ways to earn (and lose) money and question the notion of value. Coins from the collection can also be seen in several other exhibitions in the National Museum, including the Treasure Exhibition ‘The hunt for Denmark’s past’ and the Viking Exhibition opening June 27th 2024.

For special events consult en.natmus.dk

This text was provided by Helle Horsnæs from the Nationalmuseum Denmark, The Royal Collection of Coins and Medals.

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