Den Gamle By: Aarhus's Open-Air Urban History Museum

The World's First Urban Open-Air Museum

Den Gamle By, or The Old Town, is Denmark's national open-air museum of urban history and culture. Situated adjacent to the Aarhus Botanical Gardens, the complex contains between 75 and 80 historic buildings relocated from more than 20 towns across Denmark. While earlier open-air museums focused entirely on preserving rural farmsteads and peasant life, Den Gamle By was uniquely founded to preserve urban architecture, market town heritage, and the daily lives of townspeople.

The Vision of Peter Holm

The museum's origins trace back to 1909 when schoolteacher and local historian Peter Holm saved the 1597 Mayor's House from impending demolition in Aarhus. The dismantled house was initially rebuilt as a centerpiece for the 1909 Danish National Exhibition. By 1914, it was re-erected in the Botanical Gardens and opened to the public.

Under Holm's 31-year directorship from 1914 to 1945, approximately 50 endangered historic structures were rescued and reassembled, including a massive merchant estate originally from Aalborg. The project's success pioneered a new approach to historic preservation, eventually inspiring similar urban open-air historic museums in Scandinavia, including locations in Bergen, Norway, and Turku, Finland.

Four Eras of Urban History

Today, Den Gamle By spans four distinct time periods: the pre-industrial market town of the 1600s through 1800s, 1900 to 1927, 1950 to 1974, and a modern 2000 to 2014 district. The site features physical transitions across these eras, where original cobblestone streets in the 19th-century district eventually give way to more modern pavements. The 2014 street district even features retro markers of recent decades, including a period-accurate Blockbuster store, a tanning salon, and a 7-Eleven.

The site functions as an active living museum where costumed interpreters perform daily historical tasks. The smell of fresh baked goods, traditional pastries, and old-fashioned shop odors emanates from working historical bakeries and stores. This highly detailed, atmospheric setting has also served as the primary filming location for classic Danish Christmas television calendar series like Jul i Gammelby.

Specialized Collections and Modern Additions

Beyond the historic residential and commercial buildings, the complex houses specialized sub-museums. These include the Danish Poster Museum, the Toy Museum, and the Jewellery Box collection. An 800-square-meter underground exhibition space known as "Aarhus Fortæller" covers 1,200 years of city history, from the Viking era to modern times.

The museum continually adapts to incorporate modern accessibility and architecture. In 2023, a modern main entrance building designed by Cubo Architects opened, structured like an enclosed covered market square. Additionally, the site features the "House of Memory," a specialized three-room apartment designed as an accessible reminiscence space for individuals living with dementia.