Women Shopping for Perfumes and Jewelry at Illum Department Store in Copenhagen, Denmark, 1904

The Illum department store opened in 1891, initially selling sewing supplies. It was founded by a young man named Carl Illum, and its target audience was the wealthy women of Copenhagen, Denmark. Thanks to excellent customer service and a wide product selection, the store did exceptionally well. Seven years later, it was able to move to a much larger location, transforming the small shop into a full-fledged department store. Carl Illum was soon able to purchase a neighboring property, an old Renaissance building. There was a significant amount of protest when Illum demolished the historic building to expand his store.

Carl Illum died in 1938, and his family took over the department store. The company continued to expand throughout the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, becoming an even larger department store. In 1972, the family sold the business. Today, Illum department store still exists in central Copenhagen.

Copenhagen in the Mid-1980s Through Fascinating Photos

In the mid-1980s, Copenhagen was a vibrant, evolving city marked by a mix of old-world charm and emerging modernity. The city was in the midst of a cultural and economic transition, with a growing focus on design, alternative lifestyles, and counterculture. The Christiania neighborhood, a self-proclaimed anarchist enclave founded in 1971, was a focal point of alternative art, music, and politics.

Copenhagen also became increasingly known for its influence on the design world, particularly in architecture, furniture, and graphic design. The city’s cozy cafes, biking culture, and emphasis on green spaces continued to shape its identity. On the political front, Denmark was navigating its position within the European Economic Community (EEC), a precursor to the European Union.

The city in the 1980s had a relaxed, laid-back atmosphere but was also experiencing rapid urban renewal and a growing international profile. These fascinating photos from Shane Egan that captured street scenes of Copenhagen in 1985.

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Dancing at the Storyville Club, Copenhagen, 1957

“It is with the soul that we grasp the essence of another person, not with the mind, not even with the heart.” – Pictures of the Storyville Club, Copenhagen taken by Helmer Lund Hansen in 1957.

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50 Amazing Photos Capture Street Scenes of Copenhagen in the Late 19th and Early 20th Centuries

Born 1866 in Elsinore, Danish photographer and film director Peter Elfelt was a  known as the first movie pioneer in Denmark when he began making documentary films in 1897.

Copenhagen taken by Peter Elfelt from between the 1890s and early 1910s

In 1903, Elfelt filmed his only drama. The short film, titled Henrettelsen (Capital Execution), was the first fiction film made in Denmark. Based upon the actual execution of a French woman who murdered her two children.

Elfelt also shot the first advertising film. There is a 1904 example which advertises bock beer for the Svendborg Brewery. He opened the “København Kinoptikon” movie theater in 1901.

Although Elfelt was Denmark’s first pioneer of filmmaking, he considered film as secondary to his work as a photographer. Elfelt died in 1931.

These amazing photos were taken by Peter Elfelt that show street scenes of Copenhagen from between the 1890s and early 1910s.

Amager

Amager, Dyveke's yard

Amalienborg seen from the harbor

At Fuglsang Lake, Dyrehaven

At the beach

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Copenhagen After May 5th, 1945: Rare Color Pictures From the Days Around the Liberation of Denmark

During most of World War II, Denmark was first a protectorate, then an occupied territory under Germany. The decision to invade Denmark was taken in Berlin on 17 December 1939. On 9 April 1940, Germany invaded Denmark in Operation Weserübung and established a de facto protectorate over the country. On 29 August 1943 Germany placed Denmark under direct military occupation, which lasted until the Allied victory on 5 May 1945.

Contrary to the situation in other countries under German occupation, most Danish institutions continued to function relatively normally until 1945. Both the Danish government and king remained in the country in an uneasy relationship between a democratic and a totalitarian system until the Danish government stepped down in a protest against the German demands to institute the death penalty for sabotage.

Over 3,000 Danes died as a direct result of the occupation. An effective resistance movement developed by the end of the war, and most Danish Jews were rescued in 1943 when German authorities ordered their internment as part of the Holocaust.

The occupation of Denmark ended on 5 May 1945.

These rare color pictures from The National Museum that captured street scenes of Copenhagen from the days around the liberation.

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53 Wonderful Snapshots Documented Everyday Life of Copenhagen in the 1960s

Copenhagen is the capital and most populous city of Denmark. The city is situated on the eastern coast of the island of Zealand; another small portion of the city is located on Amager, and is separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the strait of Øresund. The Øresund Bridge connects the two cities by rail and road.

Originally a Viking fishing village founded in the 10th century, Copenhagen became the capital of Denmark in the early 15th century. Beginning in the 17th century it consolidated its position as a regional centre of power with its institutions, defences and armed forces.

After suffering from the effects of plague and fire in the 18th century, the city underwent a period of redevelopment. This included construction of the prestigious district of Frederiksstaden and founding of such cultural institutions as the Royal Theatre and the Royal Academy of Fine Arts.

Make a trip back to 50 years ago to see what everyday life of this city looked like in the 1960s.

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21 Rare Vintage Photos Capture People Cycling on Copenhagen Streets From Between the 1930s and 1940s

Bicycle is an important and popular mean of transportation in Copenhagen, so we can easily see people cycling on streets. It's a dominating feature of the cityscape, and the city offers a variety of favorable cycling conditions.

Here is a rare photo collection that shows people cycling on Copenhagen streets back to the 1930s and 1940s.

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Coats Coat Coat Store as Novel Sales Scheme in Copenhagen, 1936

Overstocked with a large supply of men’s spring and winter coats, a clothier in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1936, adopted a unique sales scheme. He erected a scaffolding around his store building and completely covered it from roof to sidewalk with more than a thousand overcoats.

The novel display attracted prospective customers in such droves that police were summoned. Although the police ordered the proprietor to remove the display, he succeeded in selling all the overcoats.

Vintage Bicycles in Copenhagen, Denmark From Between the 1910s and 1950s

Bicycles became common in Copenhagen at the beginning of the twentieth century. In 1890 there were 2,500 bicycles in the city, just 17 years later that figure had increased to 80,000 and Copenhagen was already considered the top cycling city in Europe. Below is a small collection of interesting vintage photos of biking culture in Copenhagen from between the 1910s and 1950s.

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Wartime Cycle Taxi in Copenhagen

The rationing of petrol during the Occupation gave rise to creative solutions. Here’s a custom made cycle taxi.

(via Copenhagenize.com)