Cornelius Knudsen was a manufacturer of scientific instruments based in

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. The company gained an international reputation and its instruments were used on a number of polar expeditions.

History

The company was founded on 10 March 1838 by Jens Cornelius Knudsen (f1807-1879). The company was initially based on

Gråbrødretorv Gråbrødretorv is a public square in the centre of Copenhagen, Denmark, just off the pedestrian street Strøget. History Gråbrødretorv (Greyfriars Square) takes its name from a Franciscan friary, which was established at the site in 1238. T ...

but relocated to a building at the corner of

Købmagergade Købmagergade is a pedestrian shopping street in the Old Town of Copenhagen, Denmark. It connects Amagertorv on Strøget to Nørreport station, although the last section, north of Kultorvet, is part of Frederiksborggade, which continues on the ot ...

and Løvstræde in 1845. Knudsen's son Theodor Valdemar Cornelius Knudsen (1844-) served as a cadet on the corvetette ''Heimdal'' in 1860. He formed a friendship with Prince Wilhelm, the later

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, who also served as a cadet on the ship. Back on land, he initially worked in his father's workshop and then attended classes at the College of Advanced Technology. He headed the family firm from 1870 and continued it alone after his father's death. On 27 May 1884, he changed his last name to Cornelius-Knudsen. Cornelius-Knudsen's sons Aage Cornelius Knudsen (1879-) and Jens Cornelius Knudsen (1885-) were assistant directors from 1905 and 1908. The company was in 1950 owned by Anna Cornelius-Knudsen (1909-).

Location

The company was from 1895 based at Købmagergade 15. The old building was replaced by a new Domus Optica in 1946-1947. It was constructed to a Functionalist design by Svenn Eske Kristensen.

Products

The product range comprised optical, navigational, and surveying instruments, planimeters and equipment for telegraphy. Barometer i bronzefigur. Nationalmuseets Klunkehjem.png, A Cornelius Knudsen barometer in the

National Museum of Denmark The National Museum of Denmark (Nationalmuseet) in Copenhagen is Denmark, Denmark's largest museum of cultural history, comprising the histories of Danish and foreign cultures, alike. The museum's main building is located a short distance from S ...

's "Victorian Apartment" at Frederiksholms Kanal 15-17 File:Cornelius Knudsen - Zeiss Telefort 12X30.jpg, Cornelius Knudsen Zeiss Telefort

References

{{reflist

External links

Renderings
in the

Danish National Art Library The Danish National Art Library is the national research library for architecture, art history, visual arts and museology in Denmark. It was founded in 1754 as part of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and has been located at Charlottenborg' ...

Defunct companies of Denmark Danish companies established in 1838