Pihl builds underground Maritime Museum

Denmark's Maritime Museum has for almost 100 years been located at Kronborg Castle, but on 17 September the Danish Minister of Culture, Per Stig Møller, turned the first sod for the construction of a new Maritime Museum in Elsinore.

Press release 23 September 2010

E. Pihl & Søn A.S. has been awarded the carcass contract for the new museum, which will be built down into an old dock between Kronborg Castle and the new Culture Yard; the latter will be accommodating a library and café, which Pihl is, by the way, currently finalising for the opening day. The buildings will be forming an important part of the Kronborg Cultural Harbour which also comprises modernization of Elsinore Harbour and recreation of the defensive structure of Kronborg Castle.

The museum will be built down into and along the inside of a 150 metre long dock where it will be possible to exhibit large objects and hold various events. 

The Maritime Museum has been designed by the Bjarke Ingels Group, and the client; Maritime Museums Byg ApS is implementing the project with support from eleven Danish foundations: A.P. Møller og Hustru Chastine Mc-Kinney Møllers Fond til almene Formaal, Arbejdsmarkedets Feriefond, Augustinus Fonden, Aage og Johanne Louis-Hansens Fond, Dampskibsselskabs Orient's Fond, Den Danske Maritime Fond, JL-Fondet, Oticon Fonden, TK Foundation, TORM's Understøttelsesfond and ØK's Almennyttige Fond.

'Pihl has built several museums, e.g. Museum of Liverpool, which is situated in the docks of Liverpool. As far as I know, however, this will be the world’s first maritime museum housed in such a large dock and it will be an exciting task for which Pihl is, among other things, to establish a 35 m deep watertight wall around the entire dock which will penetrate about 8 to 10 metres down into the layer of lime, ' says Project Director Hans Anker Nielsen of E. Pihl & Søn A.S., which has many years’ experience with complex building and civil engineering projects.

Pihl has been awarded the carcass contract and is to complete the museum during the coming 24 months for handing over in 2012.

Consulting engineer Ramboll A/S and Alectia A/S are the client’s consultants in the management of the project. The Dutch architects Kossmann.Dejong will be responsible for the design of the exhibition-related elements of the museum. The new facilities will offer excellent physical conditions for communicating historical topics and exhibiting an increased number of objects of the museum's considerable collection.