CopenhagenAndItsEnvirons_A

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v au lt behind the a lta r, th eir p resen t restin g place, to this C hapel. The Altar-piece, a m agnificently carved w ork, descriptive o f o u r S a v io u r’s histo ry from his b irth to his crucifixion, w as p resen ted to the C ath ed ral by C hristian IV ., h av in g a t an earlier date ad orned the C hapel o f F re d e rik sb o rg P alace. T h e figures an d tab lets are o f oak w o o d , overlaid w ith a coating o f p laster o f P a ris or c h a lk , strongly gilt an d coloured. T h e a rtist’s nam e and date o f w o rk ­ m anship are unknow n, b u t tbe latter, ju dging from the style, is supposed to be scarcely older th a n th e comm encem ent of the 16th. century. T h e tw o row s o f C hancel se a ts , 21 on each sid e , o f oak, beautifully ornam ented, w ere placed th ere by B ishop Je n s A n d ersen in 1 4 2 0 ; b u t the carved w o rk a b o v e , o f S cripture scen es, exhibits the ludicrous taste w hich prevailed in the late m iddle-ages o f the N o rth : K n ig h ts and P riests are clothed in the latest m idd le-age co stum e, an d C ourtiers clad in dresses a s described in ancient Scandinavian ballads. B eh in d the A lta r, Queen Margrethe3 the S em iram is o f the N orth, lies entom bed in a sim ple b u t princely m arble s a rc o p h a g u s, raised by E rik, king o f P o m e ra n ia , in 142 3 — the oldest w ell- au th en ticated roy al m onum ent in the C hurch. H ere, b u t se p a ra ted b y an iron railin g from the form er, a re also four splendid m onum ents in w hich lie the