Børsen (Danish for “the Exchange”), also known as Børsbygningen (“The (Stock) Exchange building”), is a 17th-century stock exchange in the center of Copenhagen. The historic building is situated next to Christiansborg Palace, the seat of the Danish Parliament, on the island of Slotsholmen.
Built under the reign of Christian IV in 1619–1640, the building is considered a leading example of the Dutch Renaissance style in Denmark. It is a protected building for conservation purposes.
Børsen, a popular tourist attraction, was most noted for its distinctive spire, shaped as the tails of four dragons twined together, reaching a height of 56 m (184 ft). On 16 April 2024, the building was severely damaged by fire, which toppled the spire.
Børsen was planned by Christian IV as part of his plan to strengthen Copenhagen’s role as a centre for trade and commerce in Northern Europe. A site on the north side of the embankment which connected Copenhagen to the new market town Christianshavn, which was planned on reclaimed land off the coast of Amager. The king charged Lorenz van Steenwinckel with the design of the new building, but Steenwinckel died shortly thereafter. The assignment was then passed on to his brother, Hans van Steenwinckel.
The site first had to be prepared since the embankment had not yet stabilized. Construction of the building began in 1620 and was largely completed in 1624 with the exception of the spire (installed in 1625) and details of the east gable (completed in 1640). The dragons that made up the spire, designed by the fireworks master of Christian IV, were supposed to protect the building from enemies and fire. The building contained 40 trading offices at the ground floor and one large room at the upper floor. The building was in use as a marketplace during the late 1620s. In 1647, Christian IV sold the building to the merchant Jacob Madsen for 50,000 Danish rigsdaler. Frederick III later reacquired the building from Madsen’s widow, who could no longer afford to maintain the building. The building was restored by Nicolai Eigtved in 1745.
The interior of the building was renovated in 1855, and the interior was renovated by architect Harald Conrad Stilling. In 1857, Frederick VII sold the building to Grosserer-Societetet for 70,000 rigsdaler. The building housed the Danish stock-market until 1974. In 1918, unemployed anarchists attacked Børsen, an attack that went into the Danish history books as stormen på Børsen (Storm on the Stock Exchange).
On the morning of 16 April 2024, fire spread throughout the building, resulting in the collapse of its iconic Dragespir (“Dragon Spire“) at around 08:32. The fire happened during renovation work in the main building’s copper roof but the cause of the blaze was unknown. About half of the building was destroyed. The scaffolding around Børsen also caught fire. Historic paintings from the building’s substantial art collection were rescued from the burning building by staff, emergency workers, and passers-by. Among them was From Copenhagen Stock Exchange by Skagen PainterPeder Severin Krøyer. The nearby National Museum, immediately sent 25 employees to help retrieve the art. Everyone in the building was able to leave, and there were no casualties. The scaffolding around the building made it harder for fire fighters to reach the flames, and the copper roof preserved the heat.
