You may never have learned the name of Hans Christian Andersen, but you almost certainly grew up hearing the tales the prolific Danish author penned. Walt Disney adaptations, television shows, songs, picture books, and even stage productions relate the stories spun by Andersen, whose iconic tales are embedded deep in the cultural psyche.
And at the Hans Christian Andersen Museum, at the Book Loft in Solvang, owner Katheryn Mullins sees firsthand that Andersen’s stories aren’t part of just the Western cultural psyche. Andersen is “the most famous Dane,” Mullins explained, and his stories have been translated into just about every language that is used to print literature, spreading his fame far beyond Europe and the United States.
“Solvang has a lot of foreign visitors, and many of them grow up with Andersen,” she said. “Chinese, Russians, and Israelis are especially excited to visit, though they are not the only ones. We had one visitor from Iran, and he sent us a children’s book written in Farsi when he got back home.”
Andersen’s stories include The Little Mermaid, The Emperor’s New Clothes, The Ugly Duckling, Thumbelina, and many more. Andersen penned more than 150 published stories and collections of poetry in his lifetime, from 1805 to 1875.
The museum is located in the upper story of the Book Loft, where a veritable shrine to Andersen features rare editions of his work, interpretive materials, and information about the writer. Most days you can find Mullins sitting there at her desk, ready to chat, share information about Andersen, and tour the museum with anyone who comes to visit.
“A lot of people say it brings back their childhood, because that’s when they heard the stories,” she said.
When Mullins and her late husband, Gary Mullins, began the Book Loft in the 1970s they had already accumulated a number of Hans Christian Andersen editions because of their location in Solvang. Not long after opening they also visited Denmark, including a stop at an Andersen museum in Copenhagen. They realized they should just open a museum of their own back at their bookstore in Solvang, so they collected some books and artifacts to take back during their visit.
Now, four decades later, the museum includes more books than ever and many showpieces that have been contributed over the years. There is a model of Andersen’s childhood home there, which was designed by a “famous to us” artist from Solvang, Carl Jacobsen. There is also a large bust statue there, which is quite visible down the long hallway leading to the museum once you climb the stairs at the Book Loft. The statue was created from the same cast made for the bronze bust in Solvang Park.
There’s also a cobbling station at the museum, including the tools and workspace needed for making clogs. Mullins acquired it at an antique shop in Denmark, but was sure to give the proper context for the artifact and how it relates to Andersen’s life.
“This is something a little misleading about the museum,” Mullins said. “But Andersen’s father was a shoemaker, and they did wear wooden shoes in Denmark on the farm, but Andersen’s father made leather shoes. They were kind of two separate crafts.”
Arts Editor Joe Payne wonders how comfortable wooden shoes are. Contact him at jpayne@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Sep 1-8, 2016.