Troldkirken is a Stone Age

long barrow Long barrows are a style of monument constructed across Western Europe in the fifth and fourth millennia BCE, during the Early Neolithic period. Typically constructed from earth and either timber or stone, those using the latter material repre ...

near the village of Sønderholm,

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

. It was constructed during the

Funnelbeaker culture The Funnel(-neck-)beaker culture, in short TRB or TBK (german: Trichter(-rand-)becherkultur, nl, Trechterbekercultuur; da, Tragtbægerkultur; ) was an archaeological culture in north-central Europe. It developed as a technological merger of lo ...

5–6.000 years ago and is marked out by 47

megaliths A megalith is a large stone that has been used to construct a prehistoric structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. There are over 35,000 in Europe alone, located widely from Sweden to the Mediterranean sea. The ...

. Placed on the top of the barrow is a polygonal chambered dolmen with a large

capstone CAPSTONE (Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment) is a lunar orbiter that will test and verify the calculated orbital stability planned for the Lunar Gateway space station. The spacecraft is a 12- ...

. The whole monument is some 50 metres long. The name Troldkirken means both ''Church of the Troll'' and ''Church of Sorcery'' in

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 ...

. There are several

tumuli A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or ''kurgans'', and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a mound of stones built ...

and dolmens in the area. The barrow has been a protected site since 1809, and was one of the first prehistoric relics to be protected by law in Denmark. Today

The Historical Museum of Northern Jutland The Historical Museum of Northern Jutland (HMNJ) ('' Danish: Nordjyllands Historiske Museum'') is the product of the fusion of Aalborg Historical Museum, The Museum Society for Hals, The Museum Society of Hadsund, The South Himmerland Museum, an ...

in Aalborg attends the barrow.

Myths

There are several myths surrounding Troldkirken and its peculiar name. One of them states that it appeared when nearby

troll A troll is a being in Nordic folklore, including Norse mythology. In Old Norse sources, beings described as trolls dwell in isolated areas of rocks, mountains, or caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human be ...

s was angered by the noisy church bells in Sønderholm Church. They grabbed some huge stones and threw them at the church, but missed. Another story says that a man once witnessed "the subterraneans" conduct a form of ceremony inside the dolmen.

Sources and references

* Svend Aa. Reerslev: ''Sønderholm – Landsbyen med de to kirker'', Aalborg Amtstidendes Trykkeri, 1961 (2. oplag 1975).
Troldkirken
Danish Agency for Culture *

External links

The Historical Museum of Northern Jutland
Aalborg Municipality Archaeological sites in Denmark Megalithic monuments in Denmark Funnelbeaker culture Dolmens {{Denmark-hist-stub