Ruth's Church ( da, Ruts Kirke) is a parish church located in the village of

Rutsker Rutsker is a small settlement in Rutsker Parish on the Danish island of Bornholm. It is situated in the north western part of the island, 3 km northeast of Hasle. The populated area lies immediately south of Ruth's Church. As of 2009, Rutsker ...

near Hasle on the Danish island of

Bornholm Bornholm () is a Danish island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the rest of Denmark, south of Sweden, northeast of Germany and north of Poland. Strategically located, Bornholm has been fought over for centuries. It has usually been ruled by ...

. The church was built in the early 13th century in the Romanesque style. Situated on a hilltop 130 m above sea level, it is the island's highest-standing church.Otto Norn, C. G. Schultz, Erik Skov, ''Ruts Kirke: Bornholms Nørre Herred'', Danmarks Kirker, Bornholm, Nationalmuseet, Gad, 1954, pp. 297–325.

History

The oldest reference to the church dates from 1490, where ''Sancti Michelssogen'' (St Michael's Parish) is mentioned. The church was initially consecrated as St. Michael's, possibly because of its high location. By 1621, the name had become Ruth's Church (''ecclesia Rutziana'') after

Ruth the Moabite Ruth (; ) is the person after whom the Book of Ruth is named. She was a Moabite woman who married an Israelite. After the death of all the male members of her family (her husband, her father-in-law, and her brother-in-law), she stays with her m ...

in the

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

. The church was probably built in the 13th century with a nave and chancel. The tower at the west end and the porch on the south side were added later. The chancel and the finely rounded

apsis An apsis (; ) is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body. For example, the apsides of the Earth are called the aphelion and perihelion. General description There are two apsides in any ellip ...

are part of the original structure. At the end of the 19th century, the north wing was added. The old tower and porch were removed a little later, the nave was lengthened by some 3 metres and a new tower was built.

Belltower

Constructed in the second half of the 16th century, the belltower in the churchyard is said to be the oldest on the island. It has not, however, been used since 1886 when the bells were transferred to the new tower at the west end of the church.

Frescos and font

In 1908,

fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...

s were discovered in the late Gothic apsis vaults. Depicting the signs of the evangelists, they were restored in 1930. Next to the fresco of Matthew, the date 1559 can be seen. Also of interest is the granite Romanesque font which is almost cylindrical in shape."Ruts kirke"
, ''Nordens kirker''. Retrieved 28 June 2012. File:Nordenskirker Rut(09).jpg, The old bell tower File:Nordenskirker Rut(11).jpg, Nave and chancel File:Nordenskirker Rut(14).jpg, Frescos in the apsis File:Nordenskirker Rut(05).jpg, The rounded apsis File:Nordenskirker Rut(27).jpg, The font

References

{{Bornholm Denmark Churches in Bornholm Romanesque architecture in Denmark Lutheran churches converted from Roman Catholicism

History

Belltower

Frescos and font

See also

References