Just Mathias Thiele (13 December 1795 – 9 November 1874) was a Danish scholar and librarian. A central personage during the

Danish Golden Age The Danish Golden Age () covers a period of exceptional creative production in Denmark, especially during the first half of the 19th century.Kulturnet DanmarkGuide to the Danish Golden Age Although Copenhagen had suffered from fires, Battle of Co ...

, he contributed to Danish cultural life in a number of capacities. He collected and published Danish

folk tale Oral literature, orature, or folk literature is a genre of literature that is spoken or sung in contrast to that which is written, though much oral literature has been transcribed. There is no standard definition, as anthropologists have used va ...

s with inspiration from the

Brothers Grimm The Brothers Grimm ( or ), Jacob Grimm, Jacob (1785–1863) and Wilhelm Grimm, Wilhelm (1786–1859), were Germans, German academics who together collected and published folklore. The brothers are among the best-known storytellers of Oral tradit ...

and founded the Royal Print Collection, today part of the Danish National Gallery. After the death of

Bertel Thorvaldsen Albert Bertel Thorvaldsen (; sometimes given as Thorwaldsen; 19 November 1770 – 24 March 1844) was a Danes, Danish-Icelanders, Icelandic Sculpture, sculptor and medallist, medalist of international fame, who spent most of his life (1797–183 ...

, he saved his archives and other papers and based on them he wrote his first biography. He was the father of Thorvald Nicolai Thiele.

Early life and literary production

Just Mathias Thiele was born on 13 December 1795 in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

. After receiving his schooling at the Metropolitan School and studying privately with A.G. Rudelbach, he had his debut in 1816 in ''Danfana'', a magazine, before publishing his first book, a novel named ''Bjergmandsdalen'', the following year. From 1817 to 1835 he was employed at the

Royal Danish Library Royal Danish Library () is a merger of the two previous national libraries in Denmark: the State and University Library in Aarhus and the Royal Library in Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, wit ...

. During this phase, with inspiration from the

, he collected Danish folk tales, relying on both written sources and oral ones which he collected on travels around the country. He published them in four volumes as ''Danske Folkesagn I–IV'' between 1818 and 1823 (extended edition 1843). He also wrote poetry and drama but to no great acclaim and his works within that field are forgotten today.

Relationship to Bertel Thorvaldsen

Thiele's publication of Danish folk tales was rewarded with a scholarship. He traveled to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

where he became a close friend of

who would also become a major focus for his academic writings with ''Den danske Billedhugger Bertel Thorvaldsen og hans Værker, I–IV'' ("The Danish Sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen and his oeuvre, I–IV") published from 1831 to 1850 and ''Thorvaldsens Biographie, 1-4'' from 1851 to 1856. Thiele was also a member of the committee for the foundation of Thorvaldsens Museum. After Thorvaldsen's death, he was effective in saving his archives and other papers from destruction.

Art administration

Thiele was secretary 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 1825 to 1871. While working at the Royal Library, he was the main force behind saving its neglected collection of 70,000 prints which became the basis for establishing the ''Royal Print Collection'', today part of the holdings of the Danish National Gallery. He served as inspector at the collection from 1835 and its director from 1861.

Family and friends

Thiele was married to Sophie Holten, and after her death to Hanne Aagesen in 1838. His children included: * Thorvald N. Thiele (1838–1910) who became a prominent

astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. Astronomers observe astronomical objects, such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, galax ...

actuary An actuary is a professional with advanced mathematical skills who deals with the measurement and management of risk and uncertainty. These risks can affect both sides of the balance sheet and require investment management, asset management, ...

and

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, mathematical structure, structure, space, Mathematica ...

, internationally recognized as one of the

Founders of statistics Statistics is the theory and application of mathematics to the scientific method including hypothesis generation, experimental design, sampling, data collection, data summarization, estimation, prediction and inference from those results to the ...

. * Ida Wilde née Thiele (1830–1862) who is commemorated in

Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogue (literature), travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fai ...

's tale ''Little Ida's Flowers.'' Just Mathias Thiele was throughout his life an active part of the cultural environment in Copenhagen. Still a student, he became part of the circle of artists and intellectuals around Knud Lyne and Kamma Rahbek at Bakkehuset, a time he commemorated in ''Erindringer fra Bakkehuset'' ("Memoirs from Bakkehuset") published in 1869. He was also part of the salon life at Sophienholm which revolved around Friederike Brun.

Works

* ''Danske Folkesagn,'' I-IV. Copenhagen. 1818–23. * ''Den danske Billedhugger Bertel Thorvaldsen og hans Værker,'' I-IV, Copenhagen. 1831–1850. * ''Danmarks Folkesagn,'' I-II. Copenhagen. 1843. (Optrykt 1968). * ''Den danske Almues overtroiske Meninger.'' (= ''Danmarks Folkesagn'' III). Copenhagen. 1860. (Optrykt 1968). * ''Thorvaldsens Biographie,'' I-IV. Copenhagen. 1851–1856. * ''Erindringer fra Bakkehuset,'' Copenhagen. 1869. * ''Af mit Livs Aarbøger,'' I-II. 1873 (new collected edition with ''Erindringer fra Bakkehuset'', with notes by Carl Dumreicher, 1917).

Bibliography

* Nørregård-Nielsen, Hans Edvard: ''Den lille Idas ansigter'', 1987

References

19th-century Danish memoirists {{DEFAULTSORT:Thiele, Just Mathias Danish art historians 19th-century Danish biographers Danish male biographers Danish arts administrators Mythographers 1795 births 1874 deaths Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts people Bertel Thorvaldsen