You may have noticed in one of the pictures in my last post a sarcophagus below the feet of Queen Margrete I, with the figure of an armored knight on it's top.
Christopher, Duke of Lolland (1341-1363), was, like his sister, Queen Margrete I, the child of King Valdemar IV Atterdag of Denmark and his wife, Queen Helvig of Schleswig. He never became King of Denmark because he died at age 22, predeceasing his father.
Anyway, this is the sarcophagus of Duke Christopher. The white alabaster figure on top, which had been kept in pieces in a trunk, was reassembled in 1878, and the original gemstones are now colored and cut glass.
Anyway, this is the sarcophagus of Duke Christopher. The white alabaster figure on top, which had been kept in pieces in a trunk, was reassembled in 1878, and the original gemstones are now colored and cut glass.
There are three shields on the top of the sarcophagus: The crowned shield over his right shoulder is, obviously, the small arms of Denmark, Or three lions passant azure between nine hearts gules. The one near his right foot is a little too blurry for me to quite make out for certain, though I'm pretty sure it is the King of the Wends/Funen, Gules a lindworm (wyvern) passant crowned or. Finally, the shield by this left foot is the arms of King of the Goths/Jutland, Or nine hearts gules in chief a lion passant azure.
All in all, it's a beautifully carved work, and of course, some heraldry!
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