Wednesday, November 04, 2009

Todbjerg church / Todbjerg kirke, Øster Lisbjerg herred, Randers amt.


Todbjerg Church, ab. 8 km north of Århus
Todbjerg sogn, Øster Lisbjerg herred, Randers amt

The church in Todbjerg village has a Romanesque choir and nave, a late Gothic porch to the south and a western extension, which is the bottom section of a tower. The choir and nave are in granite ashlars, and both straight-edged doors of the nave have corner pillars or other profiles carved in the frame stone, capitals with plant- and animal-reliefs and a thympanum with David in the lion's den. Only three in the choir and two of the nave's windows are preserved. Upon the choir gable are two male heads, and at the kragbånds of the choir arch are angels and winding ornaments. (Urnes -style , late Viking-period.) In the late Middle Ages the choir got a cross vault, the nave three octagonal vaults. The tower, which is probably not finished, is a cross-vaulted extension, which opens to the nave in a pointed arch arcade. Above the porch is raised a small tower, which rests upon two walled pillars. On the north wall of the choir are frescoes from the 1100s., restored in 1905 and 1954.



A walled communion table with a fine Renaissance panel from the late 1500s. Rests of a side communion table in the south eastern corner of the nave under the pulpit. When the church was restored in 1979, a painting by Sven Havsteen-Mikkelsen was placed in the middle field. SHM also painted the side wings of the altar piece; the new altar crucifix is also created by Sven Havsteen-Mikkelsen, it was bought in 2003. Altar candelabres in late Gothic style, with two coat of arms (Urne and a crowned eagle), I H S flanked by initials M W and below the coat of arms the year 1580. A Romanesque granite font, a fine example of the classic type (the Sjørslev-group) and from the same workshop as the thympanum and thus contemporary to the church building. Traces from light blue rococo-painting. A south German baptismal bowl ab. 1575. A pulpit in rococo and a contemporary sounding board. Heavy medieval church coffin, iron-mounted. Inside the coffin was in 1905 found an old parchment -letter from the 1300s and coins from ab. 1250-1400; the letter is now in Rigsarkivet, but a copy is kept together with the coins in the church. Church ship "Haabet", four-master bark 1938. Two Romanesque grave stones , one with high relief (figure with cross laying his hand on two small figures) and a long inscription about Onevic, the other without inscription, but with a low relief of Christ, holding a cross in front of him; the stones are outside in the church wall.


Skårupgård was in 1522 given by the Crown to Severin Poulsen as a livsbrev (to have for life).In 1600s it was under Kalø vasalry, but was in 1654 exchanged to rigsråd Gunde Rosenkrantz of Skaføgård (+ 1675), who in 1659 extended it and in 1661 made it a "free farm". In 1662 he pawned it to Henrik Thott, and the farm was at that time "broken down and plundered in the night by evil people". Gunde Rosenkrantz went bankrupt shortly after, and the farm came to bishop Hans Brochmand's widow Anne Laurence de la Ford, whose son Hans Brochmand of Kollerup in 1677 conveyed it to rådmand Jens Lassen in Århus and Dines Pedersen Winds of Søholt, who the same year conveyed it to Hans Arenfeldt of Kølskegård. Later owners: Hutfeld, Krabbe, Secher, Nyholm,Risom, Glæsel, Jessen. In 1946 sold to J.C.Priergaard Petersen. The pretty half-timbered main building in one storey and three wings was built in 1770.

Ingerd, Anders, Christiern and Laurids Petz sold in 1450-56 their rights in Lindå to hr. Otte Nielsen (Rosenkrantz) of Bjørnholm.

Niels Andersen willed in 1302 his estate in Skårup to Øm Kloster.

In the outskirts of Skårupgård's skov is the hill Ommestruphøj, an ab. 35 m broad, 10 m high bank, which seems to have been partly surrounded by moats. 20 m to the north has seemingly been a front building. This is possibly the place of the earliest Skårupgård.

By the road between Grøttrup and Hesselballe is another voldsted(embankment) Gravensgård. The large castle place, now overploughed and only 1/2 m higher than the ground, was surrounded by moats, but no rests of buildings have been found. According to legend a greve lived here who became poor and had to leave his manor.

Names in the Middle Ages: Todbjerg (* 1432 Todberg); Lindå (* 1446 Lyndu. Lyndwith, Lyndwath); Balle (* 1455 Balszmark, 1486 Ballof); Bendstrup (* 1446 Bendstrup, Bentstrup, Benstrup); Grøttrup (* 1451 Grottorp); Skårupgård ( * 1302 Skotterop, 1490 Skoropmarck).

Listed prehistorics: 3 hills, of which two are in Skårupgård's skov.
Demolished or destroyed: 76 hills, of which are Ballehøjene upon the large hillside at the settlement Ballehøj, and the long dolmen Kæmpehøjen at Todbjerg.

A burial place is known from Balle from early Roman period. Two rich grave findings from German Iron Age origin from the parish; from Bendstrup 3 connected bracelets, a fourth bracelet and the piece of a fifth; from Balle a necklace and a piece of ring gold.

Source: Trap Danmark, Randers amt, 1963.


photo Todbjeg kirke, 2004: grethe bachmann

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