Historic Copenhagen stock exchange, one of the city’s oldest buildings, goes up in flames

As Paris celebrated five years of reconstruction since the fire at Notre-Dame Cathedral, Copenhagen experienced its own tragedy at a historic building. The Danish city’s former stock exchange building, which dates from the 17th century, caught fire on Tuesday, in what onlookers could only describe as a tragedy.

“It’s our our Lady” a local craftsman told Danish television, according to CBS News partner BBC.

The cause of the fire, which broke out around 7:30 a.m. local time, is not yet known and no casualties have been reported, but the flames ravaged the historic building and several nearby streets were closed, reports said. local media. The Old Stock Exchange, also known as Børsen, dates back to 1625 and is one of the oldest buildings in Copenhagen, says the website run by Danish tourist offices.

The damage includes the building’s iconic spire, which legends say protects the building “against enemy attacks and fires,” according to the tourism site. The spire, designed in the shape of intertwined dragon tails, was 184 feet high.

“The Old Stock Exchange has many times been mysteriously spared from damage when fires broke out in neighboring buildings,” the site says. “The Christiansborg Palace (now the Danish Parliament) has burned down several times and even recently, in 1990, a fire broke out in the Proviantgaarden of Slotsholmsgade (Slotholm Street). On this occasion, as before, the Old Stock Exchange survived unharmed.”

But on Tuesday, he fell. Associated Press video shows the spire collapsing. The AP said the fire is believed to have started in the building’s copper roof, much of which collapsed before flames spread to other areas of the building. The roof was originally made of lead, but this material was removed during the Swedish siege of 1658 to be used for musket balls. Copper was applied in 1883 and was being replaced by 100% recycled copper, says the Danish Chamber of Commerce. Scaffolding was present on much of the building’s roof when the fire broke out.

“This morning we woke up to a sad sight, as the smoke on the rooftops of Copenhagen bore witness to the destructive Børsen fire,” Frederik X, the King of Denmark, said in a statement on Tuesday. “A significant part of our architectural cultural heritage has been and continues to be in flames.”

He said Børsen has remained a “distinctive Copenhagen landmark” for generations.

“To this day, we view the historic building as a magnificent symbol of our capital and a structure of which we, as a nation, are proud.”

Morten Langager, director of the Danish Chamber of Commerce, said first responders are working to save “everything that can be saved” the office said on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. The Associated Press captured video of people rushing to save the building’s paintings.

“It’s a national treasure,” Elisabeth Moltke told AFP. “There are a lot of Danish paintings, originals. I’ve been there several times and it’s a magnificent building so it makes me very emotional.”

Chamber of Commerce employee Carsten Lundberg told AFP they were “at a loss for words.”

“It’s a 400-year-old building that survived all the other fires that burned Copenhagen to the ground,” they said. “It’s a terrible loss.”