"Solhjul" Art Project in Give, Denmark

• Length:  ~ 31.8 ft
• Width:  ~ 19.6 ft
• Height:  ~ 39.3 ft
• Weight:  ~ 13.7 t
• Number of Nodes:  387
• Members:  965
• FE:  1,492
• Cross-Sections:  7

Model

3D Model

• 3D Viewer | Google
• 3D Viewer | Babylon
• Virtual Reality

Model | Art Project

Inspiration

When creating the artwork, artist Bo Karberg was inspired by a 5,000-year old disk wheel. It was found in 1948 in Pilkmosen, near Give. The disk wheel is considered the oldest wheel in Europe and is located in the Danish National Museum in Copenhagen.

Structure

The outer ring of the "sun wheel" is made of steel, covered with a GRP shell, and the inner grid consists of prestressed stainless steel tension bars. Glass plates are integrated into the grid structure, similar to the glass pyramid of the Louvre in Paris.

The diameter of the wheel is 36 ft. On the bottom side, the wheel is fixed in a foundation with the following dimensions: w x h x d = 13.1 ft x 22.9 ft x 8.2 ft.

The inner grid consists of a total of 7,405 parts - round steel bars with diameters ranging from 0.47 to 1.5 in.

The sculpture was funded by the EU and the Ministry of Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries of Denmark, as well as by a broad range of individuals and companies.

Engineer Martin Schmidt-Nielsen says: “The 'Solhjul' art project was designed with the RSTAB and RFEM programs. Dlubal's great support contributed to the success.”