THOMAS COSGROVE-SONNE
Master's Student (Prehistoric Archaeology)

City development is a consistent occurrence in Copenhagen. Consequently, gentrification has been a prominent topic of discussion in the social sciences. The reason for this, is that urbanisation often result in rehabilitation of unmaintained residential areas and a subsequent replacement of low-income social groups who can no longer afford to live in the districts in question.

 

This study’s focus is Amager’s urban landscape, which since the 1990s has been
subject to countless urban development projects. Amager beach will serve as the case study, as the area has been covered by such significant construction projects in the last few decades that the physical appearance of the terrain is unrecognisable when compared to its past. The case was examined in the form of fieldwork, where the few remaining tangible traces of the past, such as Kastrup Fort and The Gunpowder House, were the focal point of the investigation. Relevant theories within the humanistic science of materiality and contemporary archaeology were tested in the fieldwork and subsequently critically and constructively discussed.

 

The fieldwork highlighted the significance of the humble monuments of the past in the burgeoning modern concrete jungle; they possess a substantial value for the shared identity of the Danish society, and simultaneously, serve as a reminder of our contemporary privilege where constant fear of war in Denmark is no longer commonplace.