Jelling Church

Jelling, Denmark

The current Jelling church was built of limestone around the year 1100. Archaeologists have found traces of three earlier wooden churches on the site. The first wooden church built on the site of the present edifice was the largest of its kind anywhere in Scandinavia. Archaeological evidence suggests that it was built in the later 10th century, during the period around 960 when Harald Bluetooth introduced Christianity into Denmark, as he proclaims on the larger of the two runic stones.

The part of the church burned down in 1679 and it was restored with a new porch. The pulpit dates from the 1650s. Mural paintings were in bad shape until Julius Magnus Petersen replaced them with copies in 1875. Jelling church is part of the UNESCO World Heritage site with Jelling mounds and runestones.

References:

Wikipedia

Address

Thyrasvej 3, Jelling, Denmark

See all sites in Jelling

Details

Founded: c. 1100
Category: Religious sites in Denmark
Historical period: The First Kingdom (Denmark)

More Information

whc.unesco.org

Rating

4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby

Jelling Runestones (0 km)
Engelsholm Castle (7,8 km)
Hover Church (5,3 km)
Haraldskær Manor (6,1 km)

St. Nicholas Church (29,8 km)
St. Nicolai Church (9 km)
Koldinghus Castle (29,7 km)
Gram Castle (56,2 km)
St. Michael's Church (29,9 km)
Church of Our Lady (61,9 km)
Fredericia Fortress (29,6 km)
Hindsgavl Castle (32,7 km)
Hedensted Church (17,8 km)

User Reviews

Emre Yıldız (2 years ago)
Historically significant place. No need to expect so much. But if you passing by definitely worth to stop by...

Joshua Formentera (3 years ago)
Very interesting church and very well preserved. Jelling Church dates back to around 1100. There are a beautiful religious carve mural inside the church in watercolor done by Julius Magnus Petersen. It is really beautifully painted.

Joseph Bergin (4 years ago)
Interesting church, nice interior and fascinating runestones in graveyard you can learn more about in the adjacent museum

Keizer Soze (5 years ago)
Local church, graveyard and symbolic place with a beautiful history, that starts in the Middleages. Two enormous, ancient stones engraved by the first Dutch kings. Very nice attracion with a splendid sight on surrounding houses, and a former historic village. Around the place there are fortifications partly reconstructed for tourists to imagine the size of the historic location.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright joiseyshowaa

Historic Site of the week

Broch of Gurness

The Broch of Gurness is an Iron Age broch village. Settlement here began sometime between 500 and 200 BC. At the centre of the settlement is a stone tower or broch, which once probably reached a height of around 10 metres. Its interior is divided into sections by upright slabs. The tower features two skins of drystone walls, with stone-floored galleries in between. These are accessed by steps. Stone ledges suggest that there was once an upper storey with a timber floor. The roof would have been thatched, surrounded by a wall walk linked by stairs to the ground floor. The broch features two hearths and a subterranean stone cistern with steps leading down into it. It is thought to have some religious significance, relating to an Iron Age cult of the underground.

The remains of the central tower are up to 3.6 metres high, and the stone walls are up to 4.1 metres thick.