Lem church / Lem kirke , Støvring herred, Randers amt.

Lem kirke: stig bachmann nielsen, Naturplan.dk

 Lem church has a Romanesque choir and nave in granite ashlars, a late medieval tower to the west and a porch, probably late Gothic, to the south. Both portals are preserved, decorated with pillars, dice capitals and characteristic for the Randers area: a ribbon bow in the thympanum - the north portal is bricked-up - and a Romanesque window is bricked-up in the choir gable. A Romanesque window preserved in the north side of the choir and a Romanesque monolite lintel in the southern dike of the church yard. The tower in the same broadth as the nave was built in the late Middle Ages in re-used ashlars with plinth-stones from the old west gable of the nave and above in monk bricks. Its vaulted bottom room opens to the nave in a pointed arch arcade, the heavy and probably late Gothic porch is in the bottom in re-used ashlars and monk bricks and above in small, newer stones. The nave inside has a flat plaster loft, while the choir in the late Middle Ages got a cross vault with frescoes, the Romanesque kragsten are preserved.



the portal with a ribbon

Upon the walled communion table is a large Renaissance altar triptychon with side wings and a top field, under the foot is carved the year 1615, and the coat of arms and names of the givers Eske Brock and Christence Viffert in the side wings. In the large field was from 1892- 1948 a painting, which now hangs in the nave, while the original crucifix painting is  restored and put on its old place. Upon the triumph wall hangs a Catholic carved triptychon from ab. 1450 with the earliest known plastic pieta-image in Denmark, probably from the same workshop as the Preetz-tablet in the National Museum. The Romanesque granite font with double lions stands in the choir arch. The pulpit is Renaissance, with pillars and with decorations around portal-fields, given in 1621 by Eske Brock and Christence Viffert, whose coat of arms and names are painted in the fields. A contemporaty sounding board. The bell has the year 1547.




the vicarage

 In the porch is a runestone, found in 1954 in the dike, the preserved part of the inscription is: "- - Ulrik broder sin "( "- - Ulrik brother his)".

Names in the Middle Ages: Lem ( 1407 Lem, 1470 Lææm).

There are no listed prehistorics in the parish, but there were 4 hills.

Source: Trap Danmark, Randers amt, 1963.

photo: grethe bachmann & stig bachmann nielsen, Naturplan.dk