Lund Cathedral ( sv, Lunds domkyrka) is a

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...

of the

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...

Church of Sweden The Church of Sweden ( sv, Svenska kyrkan) is an Evangelical Lutheran national church in Sweden. A former state church, headquartered in Uppsala, with around 5.6 million members at year end 2021, it is the largest Christian denomination in Sw ...

in Lund,

Scania Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skån ...

, Sweden. It is the seat of the

Bishop of Lund List of (arch)bishops of Lund. Until the Danish Reformation the centre of a great Latin (arch)bishopric, Lund has been in Sweden since the Treaty of Roskilde in 1658. The Diocese of Lund is now one of thirteen in the Church of Sweden. Cath ...

and the main church of the

Diocese of Lund The Diocese of Lund ( sv, Lunds stift) is a diocese within the Church of Sweden which corresponds to the provinces of Blekinge and Skåne. There are 217 parishes within the diocese, the most significant number in any of the dioceses of the Chur ...

. It was built as the

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

cathedral of the

archiepiscopal see An episcopal see is, in a practical use of the phrase, the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, maki ...

of all the

Nordic countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sw ...

, dedicated to Saint Lawrence. It is one of the oldest stone buildings still in use in Sweden. Lund Cathedral has been called "the most powerful representative of

Romanesque architecture Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of medieval Europe characterized by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque style, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 11th century, this lat ...

in the Nordic countries". At the time of its construction, Lund and the cathedral belonged to Denmark. The main altar was consecrated in 1145 and the cathedral was by that time largely finished; the western towers were built somewhat later. Its architecture show clear influences from contemporary north Italian architecture, conveyed via the

Rhine Valley ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , sourc ...

. The earliest architect was named Donatus, though his precise role in the construction of the cathedral is difficult to determine. The new cathedral was richly decorated with stone sculpture, including two unusual statues in the crypt traditionally called " The giant Finn and his wife" about which a local legend has developed. The cathedral was severely damaged in a fire in 1234, and major restoration works were carried out in the early 16th century under the leadership of

Adam van Düren Adam van Düren was a master builder and stonemason active in Denmark and Sweden at the end of the fifteenth century and the first decades of the sixteenth century (he is attested from about 1487 until about 1532). Adam appears to have been of ...

. Following the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

, the cathedral suffered from lost income and dilapidation. In 1658, the city of Lund and the cathedral became a part of Sweden following the Treaty of Roskilde. Lund Cathedral was the site of the ceremony acknowledging the founding of

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion Carl Georg Brunius and later by architect Helgo Zettervall and not entirely finished until 1893. The changes implemented during the 19th century were extensive; among other things, Zettervall had the entire western part, including the towers, demolished and rebuilt to his own designs. The medieval cathedral contains several historic furnishings and works of art. Its main altarpiece was donated to the cathedral in 1398, and it also contains

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

choir stalls, bronzes and an astronomical clock from the 15th century (although heavily restored in 1923). When it was built, Lund Cathedral was lavishly decorated with Romanesque stone sculptures. It also contains late medieval stone sculptures from the time of Adam van Düren's renovation. After the Reformation the cathedral was also equipped with a decorated

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, acces ...

. Of more recent date is the large

mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

in the

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. ...

, by Joakim Skovgaard, installed in 1927. Lund Cathedral has six church organs, one of which is the largest in Sweden, and is also used as a concert venue.

Historical background

Christian missionaries from present-day Germany and England were active in the Christianisation of Denmark, and vied for influence over the kingdom. Denmark eventually became part of the Archdiocese of Hamburg-Bremen. Lund was at the time part of Denmark. With the consolidation of Danish monarchy during the second half of the 11th century, and with a political crisis in continental Europe, there arose an opportunity for the Danish monarchs to bypass the German influence over church policy in Denmark. An

episcopal see An episcopal see is, in a practical use of the phrase, the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, mak ...

was created in Lund in 1060. At the same time, another see was created in Dalby, close to Lund, where Dalby Church was built adjacent to what was possibly a royal palace. However, when the first bishop of Lund (

Henry of Lund Henry was an 11th-century bishop and Christian missionary. He was probably the keeper of the treasury of King Canute the Great in England. Sometime before the year 1035, according to Adam of Bremen, Henry went to Orkney as bishop. As Bishop of Or ...

) died, the erstwhile bishop of Dalby, Egino, was installed in Lund and Dalby abandoned as the seat of a bishop. At the same time, in 1103, Lund was proclaimed an archiepiscopal see overseeing all Nordic countries. The cathedral was not the first church to be built in Lund; the earliest churches (now vanished) were built in the city at the end of the 10th century. Some kind of rudimentary settlement probably existed at the site of Lund Cathedral at the end of the 10th and early 11th centuries, but no remains of buildings have been found there. Lund Cathedral is one of the oldest stone buildings still in use in Sweden. During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, the cathedral was surrounded by several buildings serving the diocese, of which only

Liberiet Liberiet is a building in central Lund, Sweden, south of Lund Cathedral Lund Cathedral ( sv, Lunds domkyrka) is a cathedral of the Lutheran Church of Sweden in Lund, Scania, Sweden. It is the seat of the Bishop of Lund and the main church ...

, which at one point served as a library, survives.

History

Foundation and construction

The earliest written mention of a church in Lund dedicated to Saint Lawrence – the patron saint of Lund Cathedral during the Middle Ages – dates from 1085. Slightly later sources mention both a new and an old church dedicated to Saint Lawrence. During the 1940s, archaeological excavations in the cathedral uncovered the foundations of another church inside the present building. The exact age, shape and function of this predecessor to the cathedral has been a matter of some debate. Most scholars believe that construction of a church on the site of Lund Cathedral was begun sometime during the second half of the 11th century. Some time thereafter a new church was begun in almost the same place, but to a larger design in the form of the present cathedral. Parts of the earlier church may have been incorporated in the walls of the cathedral. The decision to abandon Dalby as a bishopric and make Lund the sole archbishopric in Scandinavia may have prompted the change of plans. Apart from the obscurity which thus surrounds the very beginning of the history of the cathedral, the construction of Lund Cathedral is probably among the most well documented among any Romanesque churches. Two contemporary accounts of the building of the cathedral, in the form of the

illuminated manuscripts An illuminated manuscript is a formally prepared document where the text is often supplemented with flourishes such as borders and miniature illustrations. Often used in the Roman Catholic Church for prayers, liturgical services and psalms, the ...

'' Necrologium Lundense'' and '' Liber daticus vetustior'', are still preserved in the library of

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

, with dates of the progression of the construction. The oldest part of the cathedral is the large crypt. Its main

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in pagan ...

was inaugurated on 30 June 1123, followed by the north (1126) and south (1131) side altars of the crypt. Only then did the cathedral begin to be used. One of the main functions of the crypt appears to have been as a place where

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...

s were conducted. The main altar of the cathedral was dedicated to Saint Mary and Saint Lawrence on 1 September 1145, by the second archbishop of Lund,

Eskil Eskil is a town and district of Aksaray Province in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey, situated on the southern shore of Lake Tuz Lake Tuz ( tr, Tuz Gölü meaning 'Salt Lake'; anciently Tatta — grc, ἡ Τάττα, la, Tatta Lacus) was ...

, in a ceremony attended by bishops from present-day Germany, Denmark and Sweden. By then, the construction of the cathedral to more or less its present dimensions was complete. Unusually for that time, the architect of the cathedral is known by his name, Donatus. The name appears in both the ''Necrologium Lundense'' (as "Donatus architectus") and the ''Liber daticus vetustior''. Donatus may have been responsible for the layout of the crypt and the cathedral above ground as far west as the current north and south portals of the cathedral, although it is difficult to draw any definitive conclusions about his precise role. The same is true for his successor, possibly a builder named Ragnar. The building erected during the time of Donatus and his successor show clear influences from Romanesque architecture in

Lombardy (man), (woman) lmo, lumbard, links=no (man), (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , ...

, conveyed via the

. Donatus himself appears to have been from, or at least educated in, Lombardy. Speyer Cathedral in western Germany is stylistically closely related to Lund Cathedral (especially the crypt), and it has been proposed that Donatus came to Lund from Speyer, where construction more or less ceased in 1106 following the death of Emperor Henry IV. Similarities have also frequently been pointed out between Lund Cathedral and

Mainz Cathedral , native_name_lang = , image = Mainzer Dom nw.jpg , imagesize = , imagelink = , imagealt = , caption = , pushpin map = , pushpin label position = , pushpin map alt = , pushpin mapsize = , relief = , map caption = , iso regi ...

, and the design of the apse is similar to that of the

Basilica of Saint Servatius The Basilica of Saint Servatius is a Roman Catholic church dedicated to Saint Servatius, in the city of Maastricht, the Netherlands. The architecturally hybrid but mainly Romanesque church is situated next to the Gothic church of Saint John, ...

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...

. On a more general level, the origins of the style of Lund Cathedral can be found in Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio (

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...

), Modena Cathedral and several churches in

Pavia Pavia (, , , ; la, Ticinum; Medieval Latin: ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy in northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was the ...

, all in northern Italy. Similar stylistic influences can be seen in other cathedrals in Denmark from the same time, for example in

Ribe Cathedral Ribe Cathedral or Our Lady Maria Cathedral ( da, Ribe Domkirke or ''Vor Frue Maria Domkirke'') is located in the ancient city of Ribe, on the west coast of southern Jutland, Denmark. It was founded in the Viking Era as the first Christian church in ...

. The building of Lund Cathedral must have involved a large number of people and was a collective undertaking. Comparable but somewhat later workshops at

Cologne Cathedral Cologne Cathedral (german: Kölner Dom, officially ', English: Cathedral Church of Saint Peter) is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese ...

and

Uppsala Cathedral Uppsala Cathedral ( sv, Uppsala domkyrka) is a cathedral located between the University Hall of Uppsala University and the Fyris river in the centre of Uppsala, Sweden. A church of the Church of Sweden, the national church, in the Lutheran t ...

employed a workforce of about 100 and 60 people, respectively. The project was instrumental in establishing a workshop where local craftsmen could be educated, and thus disseminating artistic influences from continental Europe to Scandinavia. The stone sculptors , and

Majestatis Majestatis ( la, Magister Majestatis Domini, ''The Master of Christ in Majesty'', usually shortened to Majestatis and sometimes referred to as the Tryde Master, fl. second half of the 12th century) was a Romanesque stone sculptor and the creator o ...

were probably all Scandinavians who were educated at the construction site. Many early Romanesque stone churches in the countryside, particularly in Scania but also in the rest of present-day Denmark and Sweden, show direct influences from Lund Cathedral, notably

Vä Church Vä Church ( sv, Vä kyrka), sometimes also called Saint Mary's Church in Vä (''Mariakyrkan i Vä'') is a well-preserved Romanesque church in Vä, in the southern Swedish province of Scania. It belongs to the Church of Sweden and is a listed bu ...

(Scania). Other examples are e.g. ( Zealand), (

Småland Småland () is a historical province () in southern Sweden. Småland borders Blekinge, Scania, Halland, Västergötland, Östergötland and the island Öland in the Baltic Sea. The name Småland literally means ''Small Lands''. The Latinized f ...

), ( Östergötland) and Havdhem Church ( Gotland).

Fire and repairs

The plan and layout of the building consecrated in 1145 was similar to the one seen today. A noticeable difference was that the entire choir was separated from the nave by a wall and reserved for the clergy. The towers were also not built until a few decades later. The intention was probably to provide the cathedral with vaults, but instead a flat wooden ceiling was installed. The cathedral was adorned with wall paintings and almost certainly by stained glass windows, but none of these remain. In 1234, the cathedral was heavily damaged by a large fire. Large donations were made to the church in the following years, to allow for repairs. Even so, the need for repairs was continuous for the entire 13th century. Following the fire, the burnt-out ceiling was replaced by

brick A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...

vaults. Changes were also made to the layout of the westernmost part of the building. A conflict erupted between King

Christopher I of Denmark Christopher I ( da, Christoffer I) (1219 – 29 May 1259) was King of Denmark between 1252 and 1259. He was the son of Valdemar II of Denmark by his second wife, Berengaria of Portugal. He succeeded his brothers Eric IV Plovpenning and Abel of ...

and Archbishop

Jakob Erlandsen Jakob Erlandsen (died 18 February 1274) was a Danish Archbishop of Lund (1254–1274) and the central character of the first great church conflict in Denmark. History Belonging to a wealthy magnate family ( Galen clan) that was related to Arch ...

in 1257 partially because the choir had been enlarged and the seats of the royal family moved, itself a testimony of the growing power of the Church. Two

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common type ...

s were added to the cathedral during the 14th and 15th centuries; one located adjacent to the two westernmost

bays A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a gulf, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a na ...

of the south aisle of the nave, and the other as a western extension of the south transept.

Buttress A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient buildings, as a means of providing support to act against the lateral (s ...

es were also added piecemeal to the building during the 13th and 14th centuries, to stabilise the building which was under strain from the new, heavier vaults, the added chapels and the constant ringing of the 8.5

tonne The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the short ton ( United State ...

church bell.

Changes by Adam van Düren and later

The German sculptor and builder

apparently worked intermittently at restoring and altering the cathedral between 1506 or 1507 and 1524. Despite, and to some extent because of, the work that had been done during the preceding centuries since the great fire of 1234, the cathedral was in need of a thorough restoration. Adam van Düren and his workshop made several changes and contributions. A new drainage system was installed in the crypt, and as part of that work a well, which probably replaced an earlier well in the same location, was decorated with

satirical Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming or ...

allegories. The workshop of van Düren also created two new windows in the choir, built a large buttress to support the southern transept (before 1513), and rebuilt the

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aest ...

of the northern transept (1524) as well as its vaults. New and considerably larger windows with pointed arches were installed in both the northern wall of the north transept and in the southern wall of the south transept. The towers and western facade were also repaired in 1512–18 and again in 1527. It has been argued that the cathedral may have collapsed, were it not for the work done by van Düren. Following the Reformation in the 16th century, the diocese lost much of its revenues. The building was still subjected to much stress, not least by the use of the large church bell, and suffered during the recurrent wars between Denmark and Sweden; in 1658 Lund permanently became part of Sweden. Despite van Düren's repairs, the church was described as being "very dilapidated" in 1682. During the 18th century, the chapels of the church were used for funerals, but also as an improvised morgue where corpses were occasionally left for several years. Attempts at repairs were made; among them the entire apse was dismantled and then re-erected. Many of the repairs were however either temporary or outright detrimental to the condition of the building. King Gustav III of Sweden visited the cathedral crypt in 1785 and expressed his displeasure at its state. In 1812, the aforementioned chapels from the 14th and 15th centuries were demolished.

Changes by Carl Georg Brunius and Helgo Zettervall

Demolition of the tower of Lund Cathedral

When the congregation wanted to build a new church organ in the early 19th century, architect was invited to examine the structure in 1832. Nyström recommended a complete renovation of the cathedral. The chairman of the council in charge of administering the cathedral buildings, Carl Georg Brunius, was called to execute the plans of Nyström, and he did so while at the same time making changes according to his own convictions. He also wrote the first systematic art history of the cathedral. Brunius had the organ moved, the crypt repaired, installed a set of steps connecting the choir with the nave and improved the drainage system. He also removed modern furnishings, re-built some of the buttresses and changed the stone of a large part of the facade. Brunius retired due to old age in 1859, but as there was still a substantial need for repairs, the young architect Helgo Zettervall was appointed to carry out the rest of the work in 1860. A conflict between Brunius and Zettervall developed almost immediately, but Zettervall would keep working on restoring the cathedral until 1893 and ultimately managed to implement most of his ideas for the cathedral. A compromise in 1862 proposed that the Danish architect

Ferdinand Meldahl Ferdinand Meldahl (16 March 1827 – 3 February 1908) was a Danish architect best known for the reconstruction of Frederiksborg Castle after the fire in 1859. Meldahl was one of the leading proponents of historicism in Denmark. Biography He was ...

would assume the main responsibility, and Zettervall would merely assist Meldahl. However, it soon became apparent that Zettervall would not accept a subordinate role and Meldahl himself showed little interest in the project. In 1862, Zettervall traveled extensively through Germany and Italy to study stylistically related architecture, and also to visit the latest examples of building restoration so that he could draw upon that experience in his work at Lund. In 1863, he presented a first proposal for a complete restoration of the cathedral. Zettervall himself considered it a "reasonable middle ground between reparation and reconstruction". The proposal would mean the removal of all buttresses, a new roof, completely rebuilt towers, and the removal of the large Gothic windows in the transepts. Zettervall also proposed to add an octagonal dome over the crossing. Far-reaching changes would also affect the interior. In the proposal Zettervall strove to reduce and refine the building volumes of the cathedral and create a unified composition of block-like elements. The proposal by Zettervall was criticised, not least by Meldahl. Zettervall re-worked the proposal and put forward a revised, less far-reaching proposal in 1864, notably without the central dome. This proposal was also rejected and the plan for a complete overhaul abandoned; however it was at the same time decided that Zettervall would continue working on repairing the cathedral and every year make what changes that were deemed necessary. In this way, Zettervall could piecemeal over the next decades to rebuild the cathedral largely in line with his design from 1864. Between 1832 and 1893, the cathedral was radically transformed by the work of Brunius and Zettervall. All windows were replaced, several vaults and pillars were repaired or rebuilt, and both architects effected extensive changes to the transept. Just as he had suggested, Zettervall had all the buttresses removed and demolished the entire western part of the church, including the towers, and rebuilt them according to his own Neo-Romanesque designs. In the 20th century, archaeological excavations were carried out in and around the cathedral. The building also underwent a major restoration in 1954–1963, led by architect . During this time the decorative painting from the 19th century was removed. The large

decorating the apse was installed in 1927, and designed by Joakim Skovgaard. In 1990, the layout of the choir was changed and the altar placed in the crossing.

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013 ...

visited the cathedral on 31 October 2016 to observe the 499th anniversary of the beginning of the

Architecture and decoration

Lund Cathedral has been called "the most powerful representative of Romanesque architecture in the Nordic countries". It lies at some distance from any other buildings and dominates its surroundings. It consists of the two towers built by Zettervall, which flank the main entrance to the west. Behind them a

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-typ ...

with two

aisle An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, certain types of buildings, such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, pa ...

s open up to a

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building with ...

that is somewhat higher than the nave. A short flight of stairs thus connect the nave with the

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

as well as with the crypt under the choir. The choir ends in an apse. Inside, the bays of the cathedral are supported by groin vaults. The number of bays in the aisles are the double of that in the nave. The arches that separate the nave from the aisles are supported by piers and pillars of alternating width. The crypt has over forty shallow groin vaults supported by pillars with cushion capitals. It is sparsely lit by low small windows and remains largely unchanged since 1123. Seen from outside, the different elements of the building are clearly discernible as independent volumes, "as if they could be taken apart and put together again". The apse of the cathedral is a "forcefully articulated" semi-circle. Compared to its predecessors in Mainz, its composition is somewhat more elaborate with three distinct storeys each divided into fields, the lower by lesenes and the middle by columns with decorated

capitals Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...

. The uppermost part is a gallery of shallow

barrel vault A barrel vault, also known as a tunnel vault, wagon vault or wagonhead vault, is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of a single curve (or pair of curves, in the case of a pointed barrel vault) along a given distance. The curves are ...

s carried by 21 smaller columns, which open towards the exterior. The apse is the most well-preserved part of the Romanesque building and has been described as "the artistic high point of the exterior". The southern portal of the nave is perhaps the oldest of the cathedral. Five decorated archivolts supported by small columns with variously decorated

, frame a tympanon depicting the

Lamb of God Lamb of God ( el, Ἀμνὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ, Amnòs toû Theoû; la, Agnus Dei, ) is a title for Jesus that appears in the Gospel of John. It appears at John 1:29, where John the Baptist sees Jesus and exclaims, "Behold the Lamb of God wh ...

. The northern portal is slightly later and more richly decorated. Its tympanon depicts Samson wrestling with the lion. Two bronze doors built by serve as the main entrance in the centre of the west facade. They have 24 reliefs with subjects from the Bible, particularly the Old Testament. Above the doorway, the tympanon depicts

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...

, Canute IV of Denmark and Saint Lawrence. The cathedral has two sacristies. The building material of the cathedral is mostly

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicat ...

quarried in the area around Höör. The main walls are constructed as shells of sandstone filled with

fieldstone Fieldstone is a naturally occurring type of stone, which lies at or near the surface of the Earth. Fieldstone is a nuisance for farmers seeking to expand their land under cultivation, but at some point it began to be used as a construction mate ...

mixed with lime mortar. The thickness of the walls is around . File:Lunds domkyrka. Plan.png, Plan 1200. File:Lunds domkyrka–flygbild 06 september 2014.jpg, Aerial view from the south east File:Lund Cathedral 2017-08-17 4.jpg, View from the entrance towards east File:Lund cathedral interior 2015-03-30-4746.jpg, View from the altar towards west

Sculptures

Finn the Giant, Lund Cathedral crypt 2017-08-17 1

When it comes to stone sculpture, Lund Cathedral was the most lavishly decorated Romanesque building to be built in the Nordic countries, according to art historian , and its sculptures are of recognised high artistic quality. Perhaps the most well-known and striking of these are the sculptures of two figures traditionally called " The giant Finn and his wife" in the crypt. According to a local legend, the giant helped build the cathedral, and when he was not paid for his services he tried to destroy it by shaking the pillars, but was petrified. The larger of the two figures is embracing a column, while the smaller is attached to another column with a rope. These sculptures have probably been the subject of more attempts at an explanation than any other medieval artworks in Sweden, according to art historian Mereth Lindgren. Most scholars today believe the larger sculpture depicts Samson, but what the smaller figure is supposed to represent is not known. The sculptures date from the construction of the crypt but have been treated poorly, especially during the 18th century, and lost much of their original detailing. The fluted columns also found in the crypt are similar in style to English Norman architecture and may indicate that the very first artistic influences came from the area bordering the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" ( Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), ( Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Ka ...

. Apart from these columns however, the rich stone ornamentation is clearly Lombardic in style, meaning related to north Italian art of the period. Among these is a baldachin now immured in the east wall of the north transept which may have been part of the original western facade; Its columns have

Corinthian capitals The Corinthian order (Greek: Κορινθιακός ρυθμός, Latin: ''Ordo Corinthius'') is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order w ...

and support a richly decorated archivolt on which traces of original paint survives. Opposite, in the south wall, is a smaller baldachin where the columns themselves are sculpted angels (one with feather tights) standing on lions. Similar sculptures exist in

Como Como (, ; lmo, Còmm, label= Comasco , or ; lat, Novum Comum; rm, Com; french: Côme) is a city and '' comune'' in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como. Its proximity to Lake Como and to the Alps ...

and Modena in northern Italy. In addition, the capitals of the columns in the church are all of high

artisanal An artisan (from french: artisan, it, artigiano) is a skilled craft worker who makes or creates material objects partly or entirely by hand. These objects may be functional or strictly decorative, for example furniture, decorative art, ...

quality, and can be broadly divided into two groups displaying either Classical or

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

influences. Apart from its rich Romanesque decoration, Lund Cathedral also contains several late medieval sculptures made by Adam van Düren, as mentioned above. Several of these are of animals and contain inscriptions in

Low German : : : : : (70,000) (30,000) (8,000) , familycolor = Indo-European , fam2 = Germanic , fam3 = West Germanic , fam4 = North Sea Germanic , ancestor = Old Saxon , ancestor2 = Middle ...

. A relief in the south transept displaying the Woman of the Apocalypse flanked by Saint Lawrence and Saint Canute is similar to the portal relief van Düren made a couple of years earlier at

Glimmingehus Glimmingehus is a medieval era castle located at Simrishamn Municipality, Scania in southern Sweden. It is the best preserved medieval stronghold in Scandinavia. It was built 1499–1506, during an era when Scania formed a vital part of Denmark, ...

Altarpiece

The medieval main

altarpiece An altarpiece is an artwork such as a painting, sculpture or relief representing a religious subject made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting ...

was donated to the cathedral in 1398 by Ide Pedersdatter Falk. The altarpiece is one of a group of stylistically similar altarpieces and made in some north Germany city, probably by

Master Bertram Master Bertram (c.1345–c.1415), also known as Meister Bertram and Master of Minden, was a German International Gothic painter primarily of religious art. Life Bertram was born in Minden. He is first recorded in Hamburg in 1367, and l ...

or in his workshop. Its central panel depicts the

Coronation of the Virgin The Coronation of the Virgin or Coronation of Mary is a subject in Christian art, especially popular in Italy in the 13th to 15th centuries, but continuing in popularity until the 18th century and beyond. Christ, sometimes accompanied by God th ...

, surrounded by two rows of 40 saints, 26 of which are original. Twelve figures have been taken from other medieval altarpieces, while two of the added figures are from the 17th century. The altarpiece is wide but is missing an original pair of wings.

Choir stalls

The choir contains two rows of medieval choir stalls containing in total 78 seats. The wooden stalls date from the end of the 14th century, probably commissioned by archbishop Nils Jönson some time between 1361 and 1379. Clearly made by several different wood carvers, they are approximately tall without their gables and decorated with carved details. These are biblical scenes from both the

Old Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England * Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, M ...

and

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chris ...

, but the stalls also contain misericords portraying animals and other small details. Their style is

High Gothic High Gothic is a particularly refined and imposing style of Gothic architecture that appeared in northern France from about 1195 until 1250. Notable examples include Chartres Cathedral, Reims Cathedral, Amiens Cathedral, Beauvais Cathedral, and ...

and they are stylistically linked with contemporary art from the Rhine Valley. They are among the largest wooden Gothic sculptures to survive in the Nordic countries, and have been described as being of internationally high quality. The choir stalls in Lund Cathedral also lent stylistic inspiration to the choir stalls in Roskilde Cathedral and St. Bendt's Church, Ringsted. Slightly older than the choir stalls is a bishop's throne which survives in a damaged state and is placed in the south transept. It is somewhat similar in construction to the choir stalls but stylistically different and more closely related to contemporary art from north Germany. Currently placed next to the bishop's chair is also a Gothic

tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle ( he, מִשְׁכַּן, mīškān, residence, dwelling place), also known as the Tent of the Congregation ( he, link=no, אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד, ’ōhel mō‘ēḏ, also Tent of Meeting, etc.), ...

in the form of a tall, decorated wooden pillar. It contains two cabinets surmounted by a statuette of a female saint and crowned by a hexagonal spire. The tabernacle was repaired by Brunius in the 19th century. The saint may be

Ida of Toggenburg Ida of Toggenburg ( 1140 – 1226) (also: Idda, Ita, Itha, Itta, Ydda, Judith and Gutta of Fischingen) is a Swiss Christian nun, venerated as a saint in the Diocese of Constance especially in Fischingen, Switzerland. She is the protagoni ...

Astronomical clock

The astronomical clock of Lund Cathedral, presently located at the west end of the north aisle, dates from the late Middle Ages and was installed in Lund Cathedral 1425. In 1837, it was dismantled. It was restored at the initiative of architect and the Danish clockmaker Julius Bertram Larsen and re-inaugurated in 1923. The upper part, which is original, is the clock, while the lower part, a reconstruction, is a

calendar A calendar is a system of organizing days. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months and years. A date is the designation of a single and specific day within such a system. A calendar is also a phy ...

. Twice every day the two knights on the top clash their swords. The clock then plays the tune '' In dulci jubilo'' and a procession of figures representing the

three Kings The biblical Magi from Middle Persian ''moɣ''(''mard'') from Old Persian ''magu-'' 'Zoroastrian clergyman' ( or ; singular: ), also referred to as the (Three) Wise Men or (Three) Kings, also the Three Magi were distinguished foreigners in the ...

with their servants parade across the face of the clock. Similar clocks from approximately the same period are known from several churches in towns in the south

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

area. Especially the clocks in

Doberan Minster The Doberan Minster is the main Lutheran Church of Bad Doberan in Mecklenburg, Germany. Close to the Baltic Sea and the Hanseatic city of Rostock, it is the most important religious heritage of the European Route of Brick Gothic. It is the rema ...

and St. Nicholas Church, Stralsund are very similar, and it is possible that the clockmaker Nikolaus Lilienfeld who made the clock in Stralsund also made the clock in Lund. The clock was repaired 2009–2010. A decorated conventional clock from 1623 is immured on the opposite side of the nave, in the west wall of the south aisle.

Bronzes

The cathedral also owns three High Gothic

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids suc ...

columns carrying statuettes, the oldest remaining furnishings in the cathedral, and a seven-branched candelabrum from the end of the Middle Ages. Two of the bronze columns are crowned by angels, and the third one by a statuette of Saint Lawrence, holding a gridiron, the symbol of his martyrdom. It probably dates from the middle of the 14th century, while the two angel-bearing columns may be somewhat later. Saint Lawrence's column is approximately tall (and the saint ), while the columns with angels are slightly smaller. The three columns were probably made in Lübeck or

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...

. Presently located in the south transept is also the tall seven-branched candelabrum or candle holder from the late 15th century, manufactured by Harmen Bonstede in Hamburg. It was supplied to the cathedral in a dismantled state, and traces of its assembly instruction are still discernible on the candelabrum. Similar candelabra were installed in a number of Scandinavian cathedrals at approximately the same time; although the one in Lund is larger than those in the cathedrals of

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and approximately northwe ...

, Ribe, Viborg and

Stockholm Stockholm () is the capital and largest city of Sweden as well as the largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people live in the municipality, with 1.6 million in the urban area, and 2.4 million in the metropo ...

Pulpit

The current

was commissioned at the end of the 16th century and is marked with the date 1592. The artist was Johannes Ganssog from Frankfurt an der Oder in present-day Germany. It is attached with unusual technical skill to one of the pillars of the nave, and it is entered through a stair cut inside the pillar. The building material is sandstone, black

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms w ...

and black and white

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...

, and it is partially painted and

gilded Gilding is a decorative technique for applying a very thin coating of gold over solid surfaces such as metal (most common), wood, porcelain, or stone. A gilded object is also described as "gilt". Where metal is gilded, the metal below was tradi ...

. Reliefs of alabaster on the side show scenes from the New Testament.

Graves and funerary monuments

Several people have been buried in the cathedral. The crypt contains the oldest grave in the cathedral, the grave of

Hermann of Schleswig Hermann of Schleswig (died 16 January 1151), also known as Hermann of Klosterrath, was a titular bishop of Schleswig, canon and possibly also scribe at Lund Cathedral. He entered the monastery of Rolduc at an early age, and after failing to become ...

, who played an important role as an emissary of archbishop Ascer of Lund to the Pope and who may have written parts of the aforementioned ''Necrologium Lundense''. The simple Romanesque

sarcophagus A sarcophagus (plural sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a box-like funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Gre ...

, which has an inscription in Latin and a depiction of the titular bishop, is located in the apse of the crypt. It dates from the middle of the 12th century. The crypt also contains the much larger grave monument of the last archbishop, , which is centrally placed in the crypt. It is of a kind which is not unusual in continental Europe but very unusual in the Nordic countries: a large stone sarcophagus decorated on all sides with sculptures in high relief and with a full-scale depiction of the bishop in full dress on the lid. It was made by Adam van Düren in 1512. The cathedral's largest grave monument is that of bishop Hans Brostorp, who died in 1497 and who during his lifetime inaugurated the

University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in ...

. The monument is made of limestone from Gotland and decorated in low relief. The nave and the aisles contain several memorial plaques and

epitaph An epitaph (; ) is a short text honoring a deceased person. Strictly speaking, it refers to text that is inscribed on a tombstone or plaque, but it may also be used in a figurative sense. Some epitaphs are specified by the person themselves be ...

s. Several commemorate bishops, such as (1699–1777) and (1728–1811). Many others were made for professors at Lund University, e.g. (1714–1796) and (1633–1697). The oldest epitaph of the cathedral commemorates the owner of

Krageholm Castle Krageholm Castle ( sv, Krageholms slott) is an estate at Ystad Municipality in Scania, Sweden. History The original estate castle is named in the 14th century as belonging to the Due family, and then to the Tott, Brahe, Marsvin and Jörgen Krabbe ...

(1500–1567) and his wife

Görvel Fadersdotter (Sparre) Görvel Fadersdotter (Sparre) (1509 or 1517 – 20 April 1605) was a Swedish noblewoman and county administrator. She was a major landowner in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. Early life Görvel Fadersdotter was born on 1509 or 1517, at Hjulsta Ma ...

(1509 or 1517 – 1605).

Baptismal font

The

baptismal font A baptismal font is an article of church furniture used for baptism. Aspersion and affusion fonts The fonts of many Christian denominations are for baptisms using a non-immersive method, such as aspersion (sprinkling) or affusion (pouring). ...

of the cathedral is a sparsely decorated Early Gothic font made of reddish grey limestone.

Flora

Flickr - Sigfrid Lundberg - Wall-rue, Asplenium ruta-muraria

Several surveys and descriptions of the

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring ( indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. ...

of the cathedral, like the plants that grow on its walls, have been made. The first to describe the flora of the cathedral was

Daniel Rolander Daniel Rolander (1722/3 – 10 August 1793) was a Swedish biologist and an apostle of Carl Linnaeus. Rolander was born to a simple family in Hälleberga, Småland, Sweden and studied at Uppsala University where he came under the influence of Li ...

, one of the

apostles of Linnaeus The Apostles of Linnaeus were a group of students who carried out botanical and zoological expeditions throughout the world that were either devised or approved by botanist Carl Linnaeus. The expeditions took place during the latter half of the ...

, who made a list of the vascular plants,

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta ('' sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and ...

es and

lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.Elias Magnus Fries Elias Magnus Fries (15 August 1794 – 8 February 1878) was a Swedish mycologist and botanist. Career Fries was born at Femsjö ( Hylte Municipality), Småland, the son of the pastor there. He attended school in Växjö. He acquire ...

also made observations about the flora of the cathedral during the first half of the 19th century. More systematic surveys of the flora of the building have been published in 1922 and in 1993 (the latter only encompassing lichen). Of the species observed growing on the cathedral, the minute fern Asplenium ruta-muraria, wall-rue (''Asplenium ruta-muraria'') was mentioned as early as 1756 by and is perhaps the most conspicuous member of the cathedral flora. When the lichen flora was surveyed in 1993, 15 species were discovered. One of these, ''Lecanora perpruinosa'', had not been observed in the province of Scania before.

Relationship with Lund University

The founding of

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion Official website of the cathedral

Digitised copy of the ''Necrologium Lundense'', with information about the book and its contents in English

Digitised copy of the ''Liber daticus vetustior'', with information about the book and its contents in English

YouTube channel of the cathedral
{{Authority control Buildings and structures completed in 1145 12th-century churches in Sweden Buildings and structures in Lund Roman Catholic cathedrals in pre-Reformation Sweden Lutheran cathedrals in Sweden Romanesque architecture in Sweden Tourist attractions in Lund Coronation church buildings Churches in Skåne County Churches in the Diocese of Lund 12th-century establishments in Skåne County