Brarup Church

{{Infobox church | image = Brarup01.jpg | country = [[Denmark]] | denomination = [[Church of Denmark]] | parish = Nordvestfalster Sogn | deanery = Falster Provsti | diocese = [[Diocese of Lolland–Falster]] | name = Brarup Church | native_name = Brarup Kirke | native_name_lang = Danish | location = Brarup, [[Falster]] | style = [[Romanesque architecture]] }}

'''Brarup Church''' ({{langx|da|Brarup Kirke}}) is located in the village of [[Brarup]] some {{convert|5|km|abbr=on}} southwest of [[Nørre Alslev]] on the [[Denmark|Danish]] island of [[Falster]]. The [[Romanesque architecture|Late Romanesque]] church has frescos from various periods including several by the Brarup Master and his workshop from the early 16th century.<ref>[http://www.denstoredanske.dk/Kunst_og_kultur/Arkitektur/Danske_kirker_b-c/Brarup_Kirke "Brarup Kirke"], ''Den Store Danske''. {{in lang|da}} Retrieved 7 December 2012.</ref>

==History== The church is an annex to [[Kippinge Church]] as it has been since before the [[Reformation in Denmark–Norway and Holstein|Reformation]]. There is little information about ownership in the [[Middle Ages]] apart from the fact that the Crown had calling rights for the appointment of clergy. In 1585, the church owned factories and land strips on three farms.<ref name="RobertsGlasscock1983">{{cite book|last1=Roberts|first1=Brian K.|last2=Glasscock|first2=Robin Edgar|title=Villages, fields and frontiers: studies in European rural settlement in the Medieval and Early Modern periods, papers presented at the meeting of the Permanent European Conference for the Study of the Rural Landscape, held at Durham and Cambridge, England, 10-17 September 1981|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aWISAQAAIAAJ|accessdate=10 December 2012|year=1983|publisher=B.A.R.|page=109|isbn=9780860542384 }}</ref> After the Reformation, the church was owned by the Crown until it was auctioned into private ownership in 1767 but by 1793 had been reacquired by the State. In 1868, it was bought by the citizens of the parish.<ref name=natmus>[http://danmarkskirker.natmus.dk/uploads/tx_tcchurchsearch/Maribo_1244-1262.pdf Kirsten Weber-Andersen, Otto Norn, Aage Roussell, Gertrud Købke Knudsen, "Tingsted Kirke"], ''Danmarks kirker: Maribo amt, Volume 8'', 1951, Nationalmuseet, pages 1244–1262. {{in lang|da}} Retrieved 27 November 2012.</ref>

==Architecture== The [[apse]], [[chancel]] and [[nave]] are built of brick in the Late Romanesque style on a double sloping plinth with pilaster strips at the corners and saw-toothed cornices at the top. The apse is divided into three sections with narrow pilaster strips. The bevelled window to the east has been opened up and the two others reconstructed in 1911 when the church was restored. On the south wall, a small, sharply pointed and slightly projecting priest's door can be seen. The south door is still in use but has been significantly transformed. The north door has been bricked up. The tower and porch were added in the [[Gothic architecture|Gothic]] period.<ref name=nordensk>[http://www.nordenskirker.dk/Tidligere/Torkildstrup_kirke/Torkildstrup_kirke.htm "Torkildstrup kirke"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110131101046/http://nordenskirker.dk/Tidligere/Torkildstrup_kirke/Torkildstrup_kirke.htm |date=2011-01-31 }}, Nordens kirker, {{in lang|da}} Retrieved 27 November 2012.</ref>

==Interior== The apse has retained its half-domed vault. The cross vaults in the chancel and the nave's flat ceiling are original. Salt decay is noted on a vault's medieval bricks.<ref name="Siegesmund2011">{{cite book|last=Siegesmund|first=Siegfried|title=Stone in Architecture: Properties, Durability|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gl0bnf_D8wEC&pg=PA309|accessdate=10 December 2012|date=November 2011|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-3-642-14475-2|pages=309–}}</ref> The [[altarpiece]], a carved [[triptych]] from c. 1450 similar to the one in [[Vålse Church]], depicts the [[Crucifixion of Jesus|Crucifixion]] in the centre flanked by the [[Apostles in the New Testament|Apostles]]. The paintings on the back of the lateral panels are of the [[Virgin Mary]], [[John the Evangelist]], [[Catherine of Alexandria|St Catherine]] and [[John the Baptist]].<ref name=nordensk/>

The crucifix on the west wall, {{convert|268|cm|abbr=on}} in height, dates from the beginning of the 14th century. The [[pulpit]] (1635) is the work of [[Jørgen Ringnis]], carved in the [[Auricular style]]. Similar to that in [[Nørre Alslev Church]], it contains carved figures of [[Moses]], [[Redeemer (Christianity)|Christ the Savior]] and John the Baptist. The figures of the [[four Evangelists]], originally in the panels of the pulpit, are now in the apse. Originally in the chancel arch, it was moved to the southeast corner of the church, probably in 1852.<ref name=natmus/>

==Frescos== The church has frescoes from three periods, those in the apse are from c. 1275, the chancel arch decorations are from c. 1300, attributed to the Kippinge workshop, and those on the walls of the chancel and nave are from 1500–1520, attributed to the Brarup workshop. The dome of the apse contains an interesting representation of the [[Coronation of the Virgin]] from c. 1275, the oldest in Denmark, probably influenced by monks of the [[mendicant orders]] of the period. To the north, there are three female saints, St Catherine, [[Margaret the Virgin|St Margaret]] and a nun saint. To the south, a bishop without a halo and three kings can be seen, at least two with a halo. The kneeling woman is undoubtedly one of the founders of the church although there is no portrait of the male counterpart.<ref name=nordensk/>

The frescos on the chancel arch with [[seraphim]] and angels bearing [[censer]]s are attributed to the Kippinge workshop. There are also traces of the story of the [[Genesis creation narrative|Creation]] including [[Adam and Eve]].<ref name=nordensk/>

The murals on the chancel walls from 1500 to 1520 are the work of the Brarup Master. [[St Erasmus]] and [[St Lawrence]] can be seen on the north wall, the [[Resurrection of Jesus]] on the south. The chancel arch displays [[Christ in Majesty]] flanked by Mary, John the Baptist and the Apostles. The frescos on the north wall present the childhood of Jesus and scenes from the [[Passion (Christianity)|Passion]]. The alleged relationship to the [[Elmelunde Master|Elmelund workshop]] is difficult to see if the [[Annunciation to the shepherds|Annunciation]] is compared to its depiction in [[Fanefjord Church|Fanefjord]] or [[Elmelunde Church|Elmelunde]]. The eyes and nose of [[Pontius Pilate|Pilate]]'s face are clearly different from those in Elmelunde. The south wall presents [[Saint Christopher|St Christopher]] with the baby Jesus and [[Saint George and the Dragon|George and the Dragon]]. Beside the west door there are four murals of the story of Adam and Eve.<ref name=nordensk/>

<gallery class="center"> File:Brarup19Apsis og altertavle.jpg|Apse and altarpiece File:Brarup47Korhvælv vestkappe, Evas fødsel.jpg|Eva's birth, chancel vault File:Brarup80Skib nordvæg, Kristus for Pilatus.jpg|Nave wall, Christ with Pilate File:Brarup86Triumfvæg mod nord, Mand stanges med ged.jpg|Triumphal arch, man and goat File:Brarup08Skib set mod øst.jpg|The nave with Christ in Majesty </gallery>

==References== {{Reflist}}

[[Category:Churches in Falster]] [[Category:Romanesque church buildings]] [[Category:Church frescos in Denmark]] [[Category:Lutheran churches converted from Roman Catholicism]] [[Category:Churches in the Diocese of Lolland–Falster]]