LEGOLAND Billund auctions original Miniland Dannebrog yacht

A Miniland original can end up in a living room. That has never happened before. LEGOLAND Billund is sending the 1998 Royal Yacht Dannebrog to auction at Bruun Rasmussen after nearly three decades in Miniland. Anyone who wanted building instructions for the new ship can bid on the original instead.

On July 1, LEGOLAND Billund opened a new area in Miniland inspired by Copenhagen Harbour. Among the builds is a new, larger Royal Yacht Dannebrog made from 225,000 LEGO bricks. The model has already drawn strong interest among LEGO enthusiasts, and several asked for building instructions. They can own a piece of LEGOLAND history instead.

The original Royal Yacht Dannebrog has stood in Miniland since 1998. It is going to auction at Bruun Rasmussen, and the proceeds will be donated to a charitable cause. "We have seen great interest in getting building instructions for the new model of the Royal Yacht Dannebrog. Maybe one of the many people who wanted that would like to take the original model home to the living room instead," said Jan Mouritzen, head of the model department.

The original was built for the inauguration of the first Copenhagen area in Miniland in 1998. After nearly 30 years it has a little patina, but the LEGO bricks have held up impressively well. "It's clear that it has picked up a little patina over the years, but I actually find it impressive how well LEGO bricks like these hold up, even here almost 30 years later," Mouritzen said.

Nearly 30 years of LEGO history separate the two models, and the difference is large. The new model, which guests have been able to see since July 1 in the new Miniland area, is built from 225,000 LEGO bricks. The 1998 original is about 25,000 LEGO bricks, weighs 17.5 kilograms and measures 196 centimeters long and 28 centimeters wide.

With the new area open, guests can see Copenhagen Harbour in LEGO and the new Royal Yacht Dannebrog. The old model gets a chance to move on to a new home. The auction at Bruun Rasmussen begins Wednesday, Sept. 2, and runs until Wednesday, Sept. 16. The entire proceeds will be donated to a charitable cause announced after the auction ends.