The crypt
Short columns and low arches from the coming of Christianity.
Rüdiger Stehn from Kiel, Deutschland — CC BY-SA 2.0 · RhinoMind — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Tanya Dedyukhina — CC BY 3.0 · Doug Kerr — CC BY-SA 2.0
An ordinary-looking church from outside, hiding beneath it the oldest standing stone building in all of Denmark. It was found by accident in 1955 during restoration: under the chancel floor was a **crypt of about 1060** — a stone undercroft with short columns and low arches, built while Denmark was still moving from paganism to Christianity. It was part of the first cathedral in Aarhus, and lay forgotten underground for nine centuries. The space is small, cold and low-ceilinged, its light thin, and the impression it gives is immediate: these stones were laid before anything else you can see in this city existed. Above it is the fifteenth-century Gothic church with a carved wooden altarpiece, and beside it a medieval **priory** whose courtyard and cloister still stand — among the quietest places in central Aarhus. Note: do not confuse it with the larger **Aarhus Cathedral** nearby; they are different buildings.
Short columns and low arches from the coming of Christianity.
Medieval arcades still standing, the quietest corner in the centre.
Fifteenth-century Gothic woodwork in the upper church.
Vestergade 21, Aarhus
They are two separate buildings five minutes' walk apart. **Aarhus Cathedral** (Domkirke) is the longest church in Denmark — about 93 metres long with a 96-metre tower — and holds the country's largest collection of **medieval wall paintings** and a huge organ; it is the grander building. **Church of Our Lady** is much smaller but far older: its crypt of 1060 predates the cathedral by centuries, and it has a standing cloister. If you have time for one, choose the cathedral for grandeur or this for age and quiet — both are free, and they are minutes apart on foot.
Sign in to write your review of this place.
No reviews yet — be the first.