Churches in Kerteminde

Betlehemskirken Dalby

The congregation church, The Bethlehem church, located in Dalby, is a branch church to the congregation church in Kerteminde. The church was built in 1898.

The master builder A. Bentsen from Vallekilde built the church. It is made of red brigs and consists of choir, nave and twin towers, which finish of with square tips.

N.J. Termansen has decorated the inside of the church. The granite font is from Dalby parish church, but was found in a garden in Birkebjerg.

The drawing in the church is made by Larsen, Birkebjerg.

Birkende Church

Once in the 13. Century the Birkende Church was built. The accurate year is not known, but the building style and use of materials are good help for the dating work.

Changes of the building have taken place by several times. The tower part is probably the oldest part of the church, however the tower has been considerable lower. The last extension, the side nave, is from 1847 and the only part, which is not build in monk stone.

The inventory in the church is very variable in age. The communion table is build in monk stone. The altarpiece is by the National Museum is dated back to about 1450, but it only counts for the fine carved oak figures. The central part shows the crucifixion, where the figures are arranged as a whole scenery. The wings are a little bit special with 2 motives in each side. On a table stand 2 old candlesticks and a newer seven-armed candlestick. Over the font stands a seven-armed candlestick, which is lighted under baptism. The pulpit is from 1571, in 4 different squares it has the 4 evangelists. Another necessary inventory is the church bell.

Dalby Church

Dalby Church is called “Saint Peders Church”. The oldest part is from roman time. Later (15-1600) it is extended towards west. Tower and porch are also extensions. The church is known for it’s beautiful interior and inventory from about 1580-1630. In front of the tower room (earlier the Brockdorffs family burial place) there is a glorious rococo decoration.

The altarpiece from 1633 has pictures in all the squares. From the high renaissance there is pictures, and later also carved relief’s.

The tower is built in the beginning of the 15. century, and has the characteristic for north Funen churches the special circle blinding.

The tower was last in 17. century a sepulchral with a grandiose decorated entrance portal from the churches nave. At the top with a big heraldic decoration. Here stood 19 coffins with among other persons from the Brockdorff family. The church has beautiful wood carved work in the renaissance altarpiece from 1633, the older pulpit and priest and parish clerk stool is from 1588.

Also the entrance door to the church from the porch is richly decorated with old wood carved work.

Drigstrup Church

Drigstrup church is consecrated to Saint Nicolaus. The church consists of a roman choir and nave and sengonian tower and porch. The Romanic building – choir and nave – is a fight on slanting plinth and has corners of stroked granite quarters.

Of the origin wall openings the south door is the only preserved one. In sengonian time the choir and nave eight ribbed cross arches was build in, and the choirs walls was also at that occasion raised to the same level as the nave.

Later, about the reformation, the low tower towards west is added.

The present altarpiece, a copy of Murillos Madonna in baroque edge is put up the year of 1924. An earlier painting from the 18. century, “The Annunciation”, is located at the door, and an even earlier Holy Communion painting is located in the church nave. The pulpit is joiner work in baroque with twisted corner pillars and a contemporary heaven, probably from 1703.

The bell is from 1722 made by Fr. Holtzmann, donated by Anna Podebusk, Lundsgaard.

At the cemetery you can find a monument of the painter Fritz Syberg and the Funen revivalist pioneer Christen Madsen.

The Emaus Church

The Emaus Church is a congregation church in Kerteminde with a branch in Dalby. The church is build in 1868 and was consecrated January the 24. 1869. It is build after the drawing made by the master builder Hansen, Svendborg.

The church is build in yellow brigs in cross forms, with jagged gables and tower.

The altarpiece is made by J.P. Bless in 1869 and represents the disciples in Emaus after the painting in Fåborg Church, made my Marstrand. There is a fine granite font.

Around the church there is a garden, in which the clerical is build.

A plaque is placed on the church wall out to the street in memory of Ole Henrik Svane from 1814-1825. he was a central person in the religious revival in Kerteminde and the surroundings. A close friend to Christian Madsen, Bregnør. (A plaque of him is placed at Drigstrup Church)

Kerteminde Church

You find the Sct. Laurentius Church in the middle of the market place in Kerteminde. The church is a three-aisled long-house linked under one enormous roof. Traditionally said to have been built in 1476.

The chuch was greatly altered in the 1600'es, when a vault was added and the furnishing was renewed. In the south chancel there is a chapel for the Iuel family, abouve which there are memory tablets for two of the parsons of the church. You find a pair of riding boots and a sword dated from the time of the Swedish Wars.

Opening hours:
Thuesday-Saturday: 08:00-17:00
Sunday: Open during service
Sunday (June-August): 08:00-17:00

Kølstrup Church

Kølstrup church is beautifully situated opposite Ulriksholm Castle at Kertinge Nor. Built in Romanesque style around the year 1100 and contains of chancel and nave, Late Gothic tower and burial chapel pointing towards the North from 1713, as well as Late Gothic vaults.

The entrance at the tower was once burial chapel for the Bruggemann family, now it is a porch. Rich Baroque altar piece from 1713, Renaissance candle sticks, an ivory crucifix from the 14th century, and pulpit from 1610 with columns and reliefs. The font is from the 12th century just as the early gothic crucifix. The chair piece is richly cut in baroque from the middle of the 18th century.

On the North wall of the nave and in the West end you find gallery from 1737 and 1717. In the tower room you find two epitaphs from the 18th century of Brüggemanns two wives and in addition to this two Roman grave tombs.

Vibeke Kruse, former King Christian IV's mistress and mother to Ulrik Christian Gyldenløve, Ulriksholm is intered in a vault in Kølstrup church.

A very beautiful, old, protected parsonage belongs to the church.

Marslev Church

The present sengonian monk stone building is from the early 1500, but some roman plinths reveals, that there probably has been an older church the same place. And it is nearby to guess that it has been built in the Danish church building time in the 12. century.

Moving towards the church, you get closer to the porch, the entrance pointing south, which gable is provided with north Funen blindings, squares and stair windows.

Over the sandstone font is the church ship “Anna”, a three mast full rigged ship from about 1930, build by the ”Illemose Tailor” Anders Madsen from Rynkeby. Whose ships are known for highly artless style. The ship hung in the churches tower room in the 1930´s. Thereafter the ship laid on the church loft for a long time, from where it was brought to its current location in the porch.

The choir is a so-called long house with a course arch, which around 1590 was higher than the ship, but at present time is level.

The beautiful altarpiece from 1592 is a considerable amount of work in high renaissance, which got restored in 1912. It is a written altarpiece with quotes from the Bible in the squares.

In the choirs east wall, there is on each side of the altar there are two counterpart tombs representing Hans Stigsen (Ulfeldt) and his wife Anne Friis from Vejrupgaard. They died respectively in the years of 1546 and 1536. Further 4, strongly worn out, among those 2 representing priests from the 16. century, is put in the choir walls.

Opposite the parsonage, on the other side of the road, is the former tenant farm located, which operated the land owned by the church. And on the same side of the road, west to the church, “the old school” is located, it is a thatched timber-framed house, which at present time functions as a parish community centre, sexton office and candidate for confirmation school.

Mesinge Church

At Mesinge Church an old church barn is preserved, in which the tithe corn, paid by the peasants in church taxes, was stored. Later the building has served as a “hospital”. It is a beautiful, whitewashed building with thatched roof. It has a sengonian gable towards west towards the entrance portal to the cemetery.

The church has a mass spire, in which the bell hung, there were used under communion. It is a slim eight-brimmed spire over the choir gable.

The beautiful building was in the middle age devoted to Saint Catharina and according to Pontoppidans atlas the church been called “Saint Karens with the blue cloak”, supposedly because of a bluish city roof.

The wing altarpiece from 1591 has paintings from 1635 and a painting in the middle square from 1938 by Anne E. Munck representing the feeding in the desert.

The pulpit from 1586 is in fine wood carving work in oak liberated for paint.

Munkebo Church

The Church of Munkebo

Munkebo being a hilly place, you might expect its church to be placed so as to be easily seen. The reason why tourists nevertheless find it hard to locate Munkebo Church is that the entire town is orientated towards the water, and so the church had to be built close to the coastline.

The orientation towards Kertinge Nor was thus decisive for the placing of the church. This was where the monks from Odense were fishing, and which saw lively shipping prior to the foundation of nearby Kerteminde, which happened somewhat later.

Today, the church consists of a tower, a porch and a nave built in one piece, but originally it had neither tower nor porch, and the nave was shorter, as you can see on the north side, where a beautiful ashlar wall meets with an older wall of more mixed materials. When the church was erected around 1100, the nave and the choir will have reflected the sun nicely in their well-matched coloured bricks of natural materials.

Today, the south side is completely whitewashed, and you should enjoy the stones of the architectural art from the North side and note the many historical details. When the choir was demolished and the nave extended during the 15th century, it was necessary to add mission bricks as there were a shortage of ashlar. The original nave had small Romanesque windows like that which has been bricked up in the northern wall. Probably there were three such windows in both walls. The womens boarded up entrance is traceable, too, as is the corresponding entrance for men that disappeared with the addition of tower and porch around 1500.

Revninge Church

The church consists of a choir and a nave original from the roman time, but it is strongly rebuilt in sengonian time, where in west a church tower and in south a porch is added. Of the roman building the only thing still standing is the naves south wall on the sloping edge of ash.

At the thorough sengonian rebuild with tile the choir was expanded, the nave was extended towards west, which simple gable can be seen behind the tower.

Later the west church tower was built, and even later, probably after the reformation the porch at the naves south side was added. The choir upper parts and the two cross arches was renewed in the middle of the 18. century with small rocks, probably at the same time as the tower went through a main restoration. At the towers left side there is the iron initials C.G.N.A (Ahlefeldt) 1845.

Rynkeby church

The chapel towards north is built in 1560 as a tomb for the Hardenberg to Skovsbo family, however the family was never laid to rest there, which 16 empty coat of arms testifies about.

The church is especially interesting because of the frescoes, a unique renaissance decoration in the chapel. The choir and nave are late Romanic, of the original building there is a sealed of window in the naves wall towards the south.

From sengonian time the tower, chapel and porch are all with blinding gables, and the choir and nave got vaults.

The Christ figure, which is painted in the East Cape, is enclosed by the blissful and the resurrected at the bottom. On both sides stand 6 apostles. Jesus lifts his hands in blessing, and the picture (the 3 other Capes) is enclosed by a complete orchestra of 32 angles, is brought to the life in 1964. The angles play all different musical instruments, which is an exceptional representation of great musical interest. The altarpiece from 1936 frames an elderly painting: let the small children come to me. Romanic granite front. Oak crucifix from 1938 in gothic style.

Rønninge Church

Stubberup Church

Stubberup church is with the white walls and the red roof dominating in the landscape and the village. As a navigation mark the church, “the White Virgin”, particularly influenced, when the water, before the big reclaims, went to current Schelenborg.

The church nave is build with tile in late roman time with a round curve frieze and pilaster on the south wall. The tower and the porch are from the renaissance. The choir is expanded in gothic time.

I the 15. and the 16. century the church was expanded towards east and west. The tower was completed in 1600. Richly carved pulpit from about 1580 and the altarpiece from 1632.

The bishop mentions in a later visit a small brass table, which presumably showed the name of Marsk Stig, and that he should be buried in the church.

In the Danish chronicle from about 1600 Arild Huitfeldt tells the following about the marshal funeral:” his body was secretly taken from Hjelm and in the night buried at Hintzholm church by some of his merry men, for the did not want to, that anyone should know where he was put to rest, and that nothing should happened to his body.

(Initials EHB – FAR = Erik Hardenberg, Fru (Mrs.) Anne Rønnow

Viby Church

In Viby there are multiple reasons to make a stop at the church. The church is pretty unusual. It is an early gothic church building, which in 1718 over the sacristy got a tower in timber-frame, as a little independent building with hip roof and a little shingled spire. It looks very decorative.

Furthermore an extension only accessible from the outside was made in the middle of the 18. century. The extension is different from the church by the dome made with a dark copper covering. It is a chapel for the Juel family, Hverringe, from the 18. century.

The church has also a closed tomb, which is located under the east part of the church. Coffin plates are located in the porch.

A perfect work of art is the renewed inventory made by the architect Viggo Dahl in 1895. It is strongly influenced by the national Romanic direction in Danish architecture I the centuries last decades.

The long-house building is made of monk stone. The altarpiece: the Deposition. On the altar there are 2 beautiful candlesticks from 1736 and 1 big candlestick of silver. The granite font with a baptism plate is Romanic and from about 1575.