Artwork

Kirsten Svendsdatter Finds the Gold Horn at Gallehus on 20 July 1639

Kirsten Svendsdatter Finds the Gold Horn at Gallehus on 20 July 1639 is an oil painting by the Realist artist Niels Simonsen. It dates from 1859 and is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.

About this work

Overview

Niels Simonsen’s 1859 oil on canvas, titled *Kirsten Svendsdatter Finds the Gold Horn at Gallehus on 20 July 1639*, portrays the legendary unearthing of the Golden Horns of Gallehus. The work is part of the collection of Denmark’s Statens Museum for Kunst and offers a nineteenth‑century visual interpretation of a seventeenth‑century event.

Subject & Meaning

The composition centers on a young woman, dressed in a white blouse and blue skirt, kneeling beside a tree and cradling a small golden object that suggests one of the famed horns. A man in a dark hat leans on a fence, observing her, while two figures stand on a distant hill, gazing toward a village and fields, emphasizing the communal significance of the find.

Technique & Style

Simonsen employs a realistic approach typical of mid‑nineteenth‑century Danish painting, using careful modeling of light on the figures’ garments and the surrounding landscape. The muted palette and detailed rendering of textures—such as the broken wooden doll on the ground—create a quiet, dramatic atmosphere that underscores the historic moment.

History & Provenance

Although the scene depicts the 1639 discovery of the Golden Horns, Simonsen painted it more than a century and a half later, reflecting a Romantic interest in national heritage. The canvas entered the Statens Museum for Kunst’s holdings, where it remains on display as a record of both the archaeological find and its later cultural reception.