Emmislöv Church () is a church in ,

Östra Göinge Municipality Östra Göinge Municipality () is a municipality in Scania County in southern Sweden. Its seat is located in Broby. The present municipality was formed in 1974 when the former municipalities of ''Broby'', ''Glimåkra'', ''Hjärsås'' and ''Knis ...

, Sweden. It was built c. 1200 and contains several medieval murals.

History

Emmislöv Church was built c. 1200, possibly at the initiative of Bishop

Absalon Absalon (21 March 1201) was a Danish statesman and prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the bishop of Roskilde from 1158 to 1192 and archbishop of Lund from 1178 until his death. He was the foremost politician and church father of De ...

. A

church porch A church porch is a room-like structure at a church's main entrance. A porch protects from the weather to some extent. Some porches have an outer door, others a simple gate, and in some cases the outer opening is not closed in any way. The porch ...

was added during the 14th century, and the vaults that support the ceiling were constructed during the first half of the 15th century, apparently after a fire damaged the church. The western facade was demolished in 1849–1850 and replaced with a church tower designed by

Carl Georg Brunius Carl Georg Brunius (23 March 1793 – 12 November 1869) was a classical scholar, art historian, archaeologist and architect. He served as a professor and rector at Lund University. During 1833–1859, he led the restoration work of Lund Cat ...

. One of two

sacristies A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is usually located ...

was also demolished during the 19th century. The remaining sacristy is one of the largest medieval sacristies in

Scania Scania ( ), also known by its native name of Skåne (), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces () of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous w ...

and dates from the 14th century. A renovation was carried out in 1950–52. At this time, medieval murals were discovered and uncovered from under layers of

whitewash Whitewash, calcimine, kalsomine, calsomine, asbestis or lime paint is a type of paint made from slaked lime ( calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2) or chalk (calcium carbonate, CaCO3), sometimes known as "whiting". Various other additives are sometimes ...

Architecture, murals and furnishings

The church is constructed of

brick A brick is a type of construction material used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a unit primarily composed of clay. But is now also used informally to denote building un ...

. The

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

and

choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

are still the oldest parts of the church. It contains wall and vault paintings from different periods. Fragments of Romanesque paint from the 13th century survives in a few places. Most of the decorations are however from the 1460s. The vault of the choir has paintings made by

Nils Håkansson Nils Håkansson (Latinisation (literature), Latinized as Nicolaus Haquini) was a late medieval Swedish painter from Vadstena. Biography Håkansson, known as ''Vittskövlewikt:mästare#Swedish, mästaren,'' may have been the leader of a group of ...

, depicting the

Trinity The Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, , consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, thr ...

surrounded by angels making music (including an angel with a

nyckelharpa ''Nyckelharpa'' (, roughly "keyed fiddle" in Swedish language, Swedish, , plural: ) is a "keyed" Bowed string instrument, bowed chordophone, primarily originating from Sweden in its modern form, but with its historical roots scattered across med ...

) and the saints

Lawrence Lawrence may refer to: Education Colleges and universities * Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States * Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States Preparator ...

Nicholas Nicholas is a male name, the Anglophone version of an ancient Greek name in use since antiquity, and cognate with the modern Greek , . It originally derived from a combination of two Ancient Greek, Greek words meaning 'victory' and 'people'. In ...

Olaf Olaf or Olav (, , or differences between General American and Received Pronunciation, British ; ) is a Dutch, Polish, Scandinavian and German given name. It is presumably of Proto-Norse origin, reconstructed as ''*Anu-laibaz'', from ''anu'' "ances ...

Eric The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, Eirik, or Eiríkur is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-N ...

Canute Cnut ( ; ; – 12 November 1035), also known as Canute and with the epithet the Great, was King of England from 1016, King of Denmark from 1018, and King of Norway from 1028 until his death in 1035. The three kingdoms united under Cnut's rul ...

and Sigfrid. There are also depictions of

Martin of Tours Martin of Tours (; 316/3368 November 397) was the third bishop of Tours. He is the patron saint of many communities and organizations across Europe, including France's Third French Republic, Third Republic. A native of Pannonia (present-day Hung ...

and

Helena of Skövde Helena of Skövde (d. 1164, also called Helen or Elin) was a Swedish saint and patron to what is now Västergötland, in southwest Sweden, where she was born. Her father might have been a duke (or jarl) named Guthorm. Helena was widowed at a yo ...

. The paintings in the nave are contemporary with those in the choir but possibly made by a pupil of Nils Håkansson. They depict the

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Religion * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of humankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Bo ...

, the

fall of man The fall of man, the fall of Adam, or simply the Fall, is a term used in Christianity to describe the transition of the first man and woman from a state of innocent obedience to God in Christianity, God to a state of guilty disobedience. * * * * ...

and life after the fall of man. There is also a modern painting on one of the choir walls, depicting the

Ascension Ascension or ascending may refer to: Religion * "Ascension", the belief in some religions that some individuals have ascended into Heaven without dying first. The Catholic concept of the Assumption of Mary leaves open the question of her deat ...

and made by artist Pär Siregård in 1952. The oldest items belonging to the church are the gilded silver

chalice A chalice (from Latin 'cup', taken from the Ancient Greek () 'cup') is a drinking cup raised on a stem with a foot or base. Although it is a technical archaeological term, in modern parlance the word is now used almost exclusively for the ...

, which was made in Vä in 1530, and the early 16th-century

triumphal cross A rood or rood cross, sometimes known as a triumphal cross, is a cross or crucifix, especially the large crucifix set above the entrance to the chancel of a medieval church. Alternatively, it is a large sculpture or painting of the crucifixion ...

. The

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, accesse ...

was made in 1633 and is richly decorated with i.a. depictions of the

Four Evangelists In Christian tradition, the Four Evangelists are Matthew the Apostle, Matthew, Mark the Evangelist, Mark, Luke the Evangelist, Luke, and John the Evangelist, John, the authors attributed with the creation of the four canonical Gospel accounts ...

. The pews are largely modern although, unusually, their doors are preserved from the 17th century.

References

External links

*
Official site (in Swedish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Emmislov Church Churches in Skåne County Churches in the Diocese of Lund Östra Göinge Municipality