Johan Christoph Petzold (5 October 1708 - 15 September 1762) was a German sculptor who mainly worked in

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

. He was a professor at the

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts () has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark. History The Royal Danish Academy of Portraiture, Sculpture, and Architecture in Cope ...

from its establishment in 1754 and briefly held the post of Sculptor to the Danish Court.

Biography

Born in Wünschendorf near Pirna,Entry in the baptismal register of Eschdorf near Dresden

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

, Petzold had his training with

Balthasar Permoser Balthasar Permoser (13 August 1651 – 18 February 1732) was among the leading sculptors of his generation, whose evolving working styles spanned the late Baroque and early Rococo. Biography Permoser was born in Kammer bei Waging, Salzburg, t ...

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

Andreas Schlüter Andreas Schlüter (1659 – ) was a German baroque sculptor and architect, active in the Holy Roman Empire, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, and Tsardom of Russia, Russia. Biography Andreas Schlüter was born probably in Hamburg, in ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and

Georg Rafael Donner Georg Rafael Donner (24 May 1693 – 15 February 1741) was one of the most prolific Austrian sculptors of the 18th century. His style was baroque with some pseudo-ancient additions. He educated many German sculptors of his era, including his ...

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. He worked in Denmark from 1739 until 1757 interrupted by a one and a half year period from 1746 to October 1748 when he worked at the castle in

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and largest city of the Germany, German States of Germany, state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the Havel, River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

. His first work in Denmark, a relief for a pediment and a statue at the naval headquarters at

Gammelholm Gammelholm () is a predominantly residential neighbourhood in the city centre of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is bounded by the Nyhavn canal, Kongens Nytorv, Holmens Kanal, Niels Juels Gade and the waterfront along Havnegade. For centuries, the area ...

in Copenhagen, from 1739–40, was lost in the Great Fire of 1795. Other lost works include seven statues for

Hirschholm Palace Hirschholm Palace, also known as Hørsholm Palace, was a royal palace located in present-day Hørsholm, Hørsholm municipality just north of Copenhagen, Denmark. It was rebuilt in the Baroque architecture, Baroque style in the 1740s and, one of the ...

(1741) and three for Frederiksdalin

Lyngby Kongens Lyngby (, Danish language, Danish for "the King's Heather Town"; short form Lyngby) is the seat and commercial centre of Lyngby-Taarbæk Municipality in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. Lyngby Hovedgade is a busy shopping stre ...

(1745). From 1742, he worked on the sculpture groups of the Marble Bridge' pavilions at

Christiansborg Palace Christiansborg Palace (, ) is a palace and government building on the islet of Slotsholmen in central Copenhagen, Denmark. It is the seat of the Danish Parliament (), the Danish Prime Minister's Office, and the Supreme Court of Denmark. Also ...

and in 1744 and 1745 he created two large statues of Neptune and Mercury at

Børsen ( Danish for "the bourse" or "the stock exchange"), is a 17th-century commodity bourse and later stock exchange in the centre of Copenhagen, Denmark. The historic building is situated next to Christiansborg Palace, the seat of the Danish Parli ...

(the originals are now in the

Museum of Copenhagen The Museum of Copenhagen ( Danish: Københavns Bymuseum) is the official museum of Copenhagen, Denmark, documenting the city's history from the 12th century to the present. History The Museum of Copenhagen was founded in 1901. Starting in 1925, ...

). After Petzold's return to Denmark from Berlin, he initially worked on decorations for Christiansborg Palace (1749–50). The most prolific period of his career came in the 1750s when he carried out the rich decorations of the facade of Moltke's Mansion, one of the four

Amalienborg Amalienborg () is the official residence for the Danish royal family and is located in Copenhagen. Frederick VIII's palace complex has four identical Classical façades, effectively four palaces, with Rococo interiors, laid around an octagona ...

mansions, as well as sculpture for

Frederiks Hospital The royal Frederiks Hospital was Denmark's first hospital in the present-day meaning of the word. It was founded by king Frederik V and financed by the earnings from the Norwegian Postal Service. The buildings, situated in Bredgade in Copen ...

. His contributions at the hospital include the relief of the

Good Samaritan In most contexts, the concept of good denotes the conduct that should be preferred when posed with a choice between possible actions. Good is generally considered to be the opposite of evil. The specific meaning and etymology of the term and its ...

in the pediment above the main entrance towards

Bredgade Bredgade (literal translation, lit. "Broad Street") is one of the most prominent streets in Copenhagen, Denmark. Running in a straight line from Kongens Nytorv for just under one kilometre to the intersection of Esplanaden, Copenhagen, Esplanaden ...

. From 1751 he was a professor at the predecessor of the Royal Art Academy and from its opening in 1754 until 1757 at the Art Academy. In 1755 he was appointed Sculptor to the Danish Court. However,

Jacques Saly Jacques François Joseph Saly, also known as Jacques Saly (20 June 1717 – 4 May 1776), French-born sculptor who worked in France, Italy and Malta. He is commonly associated with his time in Denmark he served as Director of the Royal Danis ...

's appointment to director of the Art Academy in 1743 heralded a new era and although Petzold was no stranger to the Neoclassical style, he continued to prefer that of the

Rococo Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpte ...

. After a few years he gave up his position as professor and left Copenhagen, settling in Altona. He died in Schönfeld where he is also buried.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Petzold, Johann Christoph 18th-century Danish sculptors 18th-century Danish male artists 18th-century German sculptors German male sculptors 18th-century German male artists 1708 births 1762 deaths Emigrants from the Holy Roman Empire to Denmark–Norway