photo: Google Earth
Tyrsted kirke, Hatting herred, Vejle amt.
Tyrsted church lies about 300 meter south of Tyrsted village - in 65 meter's height upon a big slope which goes down to Horsens Fjord. The church was always solely situated and visible in the landscape. The village is now urban area, but the church has kept its free location - and from the church yard is still a view of the landscape. The church yard is surrounded by double, grassy granite boulder dikes. The old main entrance is a driving gate to the east. The present entrance is a port with a gate from ab. 1900, closed by iron grating wings between tiled pillars in red bricks.
The church was heavily restored in 1866 and later in the 1800s. Later changes and additions are all in monk bricks. A cornice of yellow bricks has been added under the roof which was raised in 1866. Tyrsted church was restored again in 1994. The floors in the church are square with yellow and grey tiles from 1866-67, in the choir they were re-newed in 1994 with pink tiles. The roof is tiled, except the choir has a leaden roof . The church was in 1986 given a colour scheme when the furnishings became a green background colour, supplemented with red, black, white and a little blue.
The church walls are raised upon a low, but strongly eroded plinth in calcareous tufa, which is visible to the north and east, but else is covered by the terrain. The northdoor is engulfed in a large round-arched opening, the bricked southdoor is only vaguely traceable under the westernest window of the nave.
The church is a Romanesque building of calcareous tufa, consisting of choir and nave. The masonry is rather disturbed, original details are the round-arched windows which have stood since 1903 as exterior niches.
Around 1500s a tower was added and a porch in the north, and at the same time vaulting was built in the choir and the nave. In the choir is one and in the nave three cross vaults.
The heavy tower is almost as broad as the church, it has four storeys - the middle storey is divided in two - the old masonry is kept to the north, partly also to the east, while the other facades are face-walled with monk bricks in 1866-67. The tower room is conncected to the church in a broad pointed arcade. There is access to the upper storeys via a staircase in the northern wall .
The porch has in the gable kept parts of a late Gothic glare decoration. In the porch is walled-in a tombstone for the pilgrim Peter Kæller (the 1300s) - and the church is by many used as the start of a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostella. It is possible to visit the church in the day hours - or else by appointment with the church office. The pilgrim stone is Gotland limestone - and it has a beautifully carved figure of the pilgrim Peter Kæller. .
Inventory.
The only thing contemporary with the building is the simple Romanesque granite font. A south German baptismal dish is from ab. 1550, but only came to the church after 1700. The altar candlesticks were donated in 1693 by Anna Maria von Offenberg, countess of Frijsenborg. Almost all remaining furnishings came with a radical restoration around 1866-67. This applies to the neo-Gothic altarpiece, the altar rail, a crucifix, the pews and the hymn boards. The altar plate from 1911 was supplied by Rasmus Jensen, Horsens and bears the donor's inscription of the church-owner, count Mogens Krag-Juel-Vind-Frijs.
A wafer with the mark Sterling from 1986. An armchair for the priest from 1886 in the choir. Three chandeliers from 1913 in Baroque style 1913.
A church bell, cast 1895 by Jørgen Stallknecht, Horsens. A bell from 1425-50 has casting mark for N. Eskildsen. It is now in the National Museum.
Gravestone ab. 1620 for Rasmus Hansøn, priest and parson, with his dear wife Karen Iensdatter.
Some cast iron crosses in the church yard from the 1700-1800s.
Source: Danmarks Kirker, National Museum.
