Gedser Church lies in the town of
Gedser
Gedser is a town at the southern tip of the Danish island of Falster in the Guldborgsund Municipality in Sjælland region. It is the southernmost town in Denmark, and also the southernmost point of Scandinavia and the Nordic countries. The town h ...
on the southern tip of the
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
island of
Falster
Falster () is an island in south-eastern Denmark with an area of and 43,398 inhabitants as of 1 January 2010. . It is the church of Gedser Parish. Completed in 1915, it was designed by
Peder Vilhelm Jensen-Klint
Peder Vilhelm Jensen-Klint (21 June 1853 – 1 December 1930) was a Danish architect, designer, painter and architectural theorist, best known for designing Grundtvig's Church in Copenhagen, generally considered to be one of the most important ...
, best known for designing
Grundtvig's Church
Grundtvig's Church ( da, Grundtvigs Kirke) is located in the Bispebjerg district of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is a rare example of expressionist church architecture. Due to its originality, it is one of the best known churches in the city.
History ...
in
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
.
History
Over the centuries, the two parish churches of southern Falster had been located in Skelby and Gedesby. When Gedser grew to a community of 1,000 to 1,300 around the end of the 19th century, the need for a church became stronger. While visiting the town, the crown prince, later
King Frederik VIII
Frederick VIII ( da, Christian Frederik Vilhelm Carl; 3 June 1843 – 14 May 1912) was King of Denmark from 29 January 1906 until his death in 1912.
The eldest son of King Christian IX, nicknamed the ''Father-in-law of Europe'', Frederick ...
, is quoted as saying: "It is too far to Gedesby and it is good to hear God's word every once in a while."
In 1907, a church committee was set up and
Peder Vilhelm Jensen-Klint
Peder Vilhelm Jensen-Klint (21 June 1853 – 1 December 1930) was a Danish architect, designer, painter and architectural theorist, best known for designing Grundtvig's Church in Copenhagen, generally considered to be one of the most important ...
was commissioned to design the building. Despite a very tight budget, construction began in 1913 and the church was consecrated on
Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday is a Christian moveable feast that falls on the Sunday before Easter. The feast commemorates Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem, an event mentioned in each of the four canonical Gospels. Palm Sunday marks the first day of Holy ...
1915.
[
Legend has it that the day a church is completed in Gedser, the sea will wipe away the town. Somewhere or other, there is therefore a missing brick so that it can never be said that the church has been completed.][
]
Architecture
With its yellow brickwork and vertical ornamentation resembling organ pipe
An organ pipe is a sound-producing element of the pipe organ that resonates at a specific pitch when pressurized air (commonly referred to as ''wind'') is driven through it. Each pipe is tuned to a specific note of the musical scale. A set of ...
s, the exterior bears similarities to Jensen-Klint's later and much more famous work, Grundtvig's Church
Grundtvig's Church ( da, Grundtvigs Kirke) is located in the Bispebjerg district of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is a rare example of expressionist church architecture. Due to its originality, it is one of the best known churches in the city.
History ...
in Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
. But this does not extend to the inside which is dominated by the imposing timber structure of the roof which looks like an inverted ship's hull, reflecting the town's nautical traditions as a port and important ferry terminal. The ribs work as supporting columns. The most striking ornamentation of the interior is the fresco in the demi-domal vault above the choir. When the church was completed, there were no funds for a painting but by 1924, public collections and gifts had provided the necessary means. On Jensen-Klint's recommendation, a still young Elof Riseby was charged with the assignment. The fresco is inspired by John 3:16: ''For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son''.
Gallery
Image:Gedser(01).JPG, Facade with main entrance
Image:Gedser Church - facade detail.jpg, Facade detail
Image:Gedser Church - interior.jpg, The interior
Image:Gedser Church - ceiling.jpg, Ribs used as supporting columns
File:Nordenskirker Gedser(10).jpg, Altar painting
See also
*Architecture of Denmark
Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings ...
References
{{Falster Denmark
Churches in Falster
Churches completed in 1915
20th-century Church of Denmark churches
Churches in the Diocese of Lolland–Falster