Tirslundstein
The Tirslundstein ( Danish Tirslundsten - German stone in the forest of the god Tyr ) is a boulder ( Danish vandreblok ) made of granite . It is located in a forest clearing (Tirslund Plantage) in southwest Jutland between Brørup and Holsted Stationsby in Vejen Municipality . The stone has a circumference of around 16 meters, a height of a good 3.5 meters above the ground and weighs around 338 t.
One cannot say with sufficient certainty whether it had a religious meaning in Jutland until Christianization, around the year 1000 AD, but its name suggests one. Therefore it is assigned a meaning as a place of worship. If you look at the stone from the southeast, with a little imagination you can see a mighty man's head with narrow eyes, a massive hooked nose and a bushy mustache.
Since the Tirslundstein, on the other hand, lies in an area free of erratic blocks and without boulders, the legend arose that it was brought there by human hands. According to legend, King Harald Blåtand wanted the stone to be placed as a memorial on the burial mounds of King Gorm and Queen Thyra in Jelling . The transport was supposed to take place with the help of a large iron sledge, but his enemies made sure that Harald had to give up his plan and leave the stone lying around. Like all legends, this one has a historical core, which is reflected in Harald's vita. Harald, who failed with the introduction of Christianity (possibly connected with the destruction of pagan cult sites), was expelled from Denmark by his son Sven Gabelbart , who led the resistance.
Web links
- Tirslundstenen on kulturarv.dk (Danish)
- GEUS description dan. and picture
Coordinates: 55 ° 29 ′ 20.6 " N , 8 ° 57 ′ 29.9" E