Glancing at the tower, did you notice the peculiar stone relief above the entrance? This is Voldby Kirke and it has a story to tell. Voldby Kirke is a testament to time. It stands as a beacon of history in this small village near Hammel.
Imagine Voldby around the year 1200. The villagers construct a simple church. It consisted of a choir and nave. Around 1500 a tower was added. This tower was a “styltetårn”. It was later rebuilt. The entrance found its place on the tower’s side no earlier than 1770.
The building underwent a significant “hovedreparation” from 1877 to 1879. This renovation shaped the church. It shaped both its exterior and interior.
Today Voldby Kirke’s exterior walls are bare. The tower and its base show traces of older limewash. Cement paint also marks its past. Inside the walls are white. The well-preserved cassette ceilings are striking. They feature strong profiled cornices and are grained. The choir and central aisle retain their diagonal-laid tile floors. These tiles date back to 1877-79. The porch has light gray slate flooring. This was installed in 1967.
The church’s layout shows precision. The square choir connects to the nave. The nave is proportioned. Its long walls align almost perfectly. They align with the choir’s east-west facades. The orientation has a slight deviation to the south.
Granite blocks form the building. The lowest course is 50 cm high. The course height decreases upwards in the usual manner. The back walls in the nave are fieldstone. The vanished triumphal arch was also fieldstone. The nave’s western gable and the choir’s gable were bricked with blocks. This lasted until 1887. Virtually all facades were rebuilt during the “hovedreparation”. No original details remain untouched.
Both nave portals have disappeared. Before 1877 the north door’s west jamb stone existed. A “flat, smooth” lintel was also in place. The jamb stone was removed during the renovation. It was adorned with a relief. It showed a man with a spear above another. The lower figure held a staff. A small cross was at his side.
The tympanon in Voldby Kirke is unique. It sits in the tower above the entrance. It shows one head. The inscription band bears two names: Johannes and Mattæus. The stone broke at some point. Perhaps when it was removed from its original place above the south door. When the two doors were closed the tympanons were reused. In 1902 it was walled over the entrance in the tower’s west side.
Matthew is represented with an angel attribute. John is shown with his eagle. Is the head in the middle Jesus? Perhaps there were originally two stones joined into one.
The nave’s north side once had two windows. These windows are now gone. The choir also had two windows. These are bricked up. Only rectangular lintels are visible today. One is in the gable and one in the north side.
The winged altarpiece deserves attention. It hangs on the nave’s north wall. This virtuoso carved panel from around 1520-25 features a special devotional motif. It was created by the renowned Odense sculptor Claus Berg. It was likely not intended for a village church. Its early history remains unknown.
In 2009 the epitaph came into focus. Author Henry Lincoln visited Voldby Kirke. He sought traces of the Cathars. These were a Christian-Gnostic sect in Southern France. They were eradicated by the Catholic Church. Lincoln expressed great enthusiasm. He admired the overwhelming carving work in Voldby Kirke. Although, he found no direct link between the Cathars and the altar scenes.
Voldby is an old village dating back to around 900 AD. Archaeological excavations confirm this. The town existed since the Viking Age. The name Voldby means “the town on the grassy plain.”
In 1982 the Voldby Parish Council purchased an older house. It was located west of the cemetery. This became Voldby Sognehus. It provided parking for the church. It also established a material yard for the cemetery. The building offered a tool room and meeting room for the parish council.
Voldby Kirke stands not just as a building. It stands as a repository of stories. It connects us to the past. It enriches our present.