Name Georg Anthon Died 1781 | Role Architect Structures Frederiks Kirke | |
Georg (George) David Anthon (1714 – August 30, 1781) was a German-Danish architect.
Anthon was a student of Danish architect Nicolai Eigtved and graduated as a teacher of geometry and architecture from The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in 1748.
In 1751 he became a royal building inspector da:kongelig bygningsinspektor and in 1761 he was named Royal Master Builder with responsibility for all the royal castles and homes.
He worked as a teacher at the Royal Danish Academy until 1760. He applied for membership of the Academy in 1759 but his application was denied. He never gained membership.
He was schooled in the Rococo style of architecture when Neoclassicism was regarded as the leading style. He was controversial and proposed tearing down the spires of both Borsen - the Stock Exchange from 1640 and Rosenborg Castle from 1624 and replacing them with dome structures. The architect Caspar Frederik Harsdorff intervened and stopped the plan.
Anthon built the tower of Christian's Church, Copenhagen, the stables at both Frederiksberg Castle and Nakkehoved Lighthouse and also redesigned Bregentved Estate. For a short period after Nicolai Eigtved's death, Anthon led the account-taking work on Marmorkirken. In 1759, he published Anvisning til den civile Bygningskunst - Instructions for Civilian Architecture in English, which was published in three editions.
Anthon married Eigtved's daughter, Anne Margrethe on April 28, 1755 and his son Adam Gottlob was born in 1756. Anthon died on August 30, 1781.