The Old Church of Our Lady (Danish : Gammel Vor Frue Kirke) is an 11th-century brick church in Roskilde on the Danish island of Zealand. [1]
The Old Church of Our Lady (Danish : Gammel Vor Frue Kirke) is an 11th-century brick church in Roskilde on the Danish island of Zealand. [1]
According to Saxo Grammaticus, the church consecrated to Our Lady was built by Svend Nordmand who was bishop of Roskilde from 1073 to 1088. Around 1160, a convent for Benedictine nuns was established in connection with the church. It was however transferred to the Cistercians in the late 12th century. [2] In 1177, Bishop Absalon allowed the locally acclaimed saint Margrethe af Højelse to be buried in the church. As a result, it was enriched by the many pilgrims who were attracted to visit it. [1] The convent survived the Reformation, still hosting nuns in 1563. The convent was probably demolished in the early 1570s but the church, apart from the choir which was possibly destroyed by fire in 1599, remained intact. [2] [1] [3]
Under Christian III (who reigned until 1559), it became a parish church for Kamstrup, Tjæreby, Skalstrup, Darup and Hastrup. Since 1907 when a new Church of Our Lady was built south of Roskilde, the church has seldom been used for services. [2]
The church is located on the southern fringe of the old town of Roskilde, some 700 m (2,300 ft) from the cathedral. Constructed principally of travertine limestone and medieval brick (munkesten), the church consists of a Romanesque nave and northern aisle and a Late Romanesque extension to the west with a Gothic tower. The church underwent numerous alterations and extensions in the Middle Ages. The south aisle was fully rebuilt in 1887. [2] The Old Church of Our Lady is Zealand's only surviving travertine basilica, that is one with a high central nave opening onto lateral aisles. It present appearance is the result of restoration work in the 1850s. [1]
The church was originally decorated with frescos, traces of which were discovered in 1865. Today's decoration of the vaults is the work of Jacob Kornerup, based on his interpretation of the earlier frescos. The carved altarpiece from c. 1620, probably the work of Brix Michgell's workshop, is similar to those in Sonnerup and Gadstrup. Similarly, the carved pulpit bearing the date 1623, is the work of the same workshop. [2]
Burials at the church includes:
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Roskilde Abbey or Our Lady's Abbey, Roskilde was a monastery of nuns dedicated to Saint Mary the Virgin. The abbey was located at Roskilde on the Danish island of Zealand. It was founded in the early 12th century for Benedictine nuns, but in 1177 became part of the Cistercian reform movement. The abbey was suppressed in 1536 during the Protestant Reformation in Denmark. It is now the site the Old Church of Our Lady, Roskilde
The Carmelite Priory, Helsingør, or Priory of Our Lady, Helsingør was a house of Carmelite friars in Helsingør, Zealand, Denmark, established in 1430. It is the finest example of a complete monastic complex surviving in Denmark, and one of the best in all of Scandinavia.
Our Lady's Priory, Aarhus was an early Dominican foundation just outside the original walls of Aarhus, Denmark. The buildings are part of the Church of Our Lady complex, now part of the inner city of Aarhus, but they have been repurposed.
The Abbey of Our Lady, Aalborg was an early Benedictine monastery in Aalborg, Denmark. The former monastic church survived a parish church until 1876 when it was demolished. The present Vor Frue Kirke was built on the site between 1877-1878.
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The Church of Our Lady is a historical building at Kalundborg in northwestern Zealand, Denmark. The precise date of construction is not known with any certainty, though its architecture indicates the early part of the 13th century. With its five distinctive towers, it stands on a hill above the harbour, making it the town's most imposing landmark.
The Church of Our Lady in Assens is located on (Fyn). It is a Church of Denmark parish church.
Stubbekøbing Church is located in Stubbekøbing some 18 km (11 mi) northeast of Nørre Alslev on the Danish island of Falster. The basilical nave was built of limestone in the Late Romanesque period. Choir and tower are of brick, the choir built in Early Gothic style, tower and the northern chapels in the 15th century in Late Gothic style. In addition to its Renaissance altarpiece and pulpit, it has a variety of old frescos and wall decorations (1300–1500).
Brarup Church is located in the village of Brarup some 5 km (3.1 mi) southwest of Nørre Alslev on the Danish island of Falster. The Late Romanesque church has frescos from various periods including several by the Brarup Master and his workshop from the early 16th century.
Undløse Church is located in the village of Undløse some 17 km (11 mi) southwest of Holbæk in northern Zealand, Denmark. The original part of the Romanesque church derives from the late 12th century. The church is noted for its early 15th-century frescoes and for its elaborate Baroque altarpiece and pulpit, both woodcuts by Abel Schrøder.
Faxe Church is a Danish church located in the Diocese of Roskilde, in Faxe, Region Sjælland on the island of Zealand. It was built at the end of the 15th century on a site where there had originally been a Romanesque church. A number of frescos, probably painted by artists from the Brarup workshop, have been uncovered on the cross vaults, most recently above the organ.
Freerslev Church is located in the Danish Diocese of Roskilde, Faxe Municipality in Region Sjælland on the island of Zealand. Parts of the original Romanesque church subsist today although there have been substantial Gothic additions. Primitive 14th-century frescos have been uncovered in the arch of an old window on the north wall.
Toreby Church is the parish church of Toreby on the Danish island of Lolland. It is an unusually large red-brick Romanesque building, the nave and chancel having been extended in the Gothic period with a sacristy and lateral aisle. The tower is late Romanesque. There are frescos from c. 1400 in the sacristy. The carved pulpit (1645) is the work of Jørgen Ringnis.
St Ib's Church is a Romanesque church in Roskilde on the Danish island of Zealand. It was first mentioned in 1291. The church was once richly decorated with frescos.
Saint Jørgensbjerg Church is a historic church in Roskilde on the Danish island of Zealand. With a nave and chancel in travertine limestone dating from c. 1080, it is Denmark's oldest preserved stone building.
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Korsbrødregården is the ancient compound of the Knights Hospitaller in the Danish City of Nyborg, founded as a dependency of their castle and hospital in Antvorskov. It is situated south of Vor Frue Kirke just across the small street named Korsbrødregade. The Brick Gothic building has been erected at about 1400 and was first mentioned in 1405. It consists of two ailes. the northern one has a large vaulted cellar with two naves.
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