Østbirk Church (danish: Østbirk Kirke) is a parish church in Horsens Municipality. It is overseen by the Diocese of Aarhus in the Church of Denmark. The Church was constructed around the year 1200 and features romanesque and gothic architecture. It is decorated with 16th century frescos along with intricate woodwork and carvings. Parish history The exact date of the church's establishment is unknown, though it was first recorded by written sources in 1267. In the middle ages, Østbirk Church belonged to Voer Abbey. After the dissolution of the Abbey during the reformation, the church was a possession of the crown, who then passed ownership to Peder Skram. Skram was the owner of Urup Gods, a nearby estate, and its successive owners oversaw the church until the early 19th century. The church became independent in 1911. Østbirk Church serves as the center of the parish of Østbirk Sogn. Until the 1970 Danish Municipal Reform, Østbirk Sogn was located in Voer Herred, a hundred in the former district of Skanderborg Amt. It was then part of Gedved Municipality until the Municipality Reform of 2007, when it was integrated into Horsens Municipality in the Central Denmark Region. Building The oldest part of the church is believed to have been built around the year 1200. Its nave was built in a romanesque style out of rough fieldstone and travertine, and does not have a clear plinth. The tower and the southern wing of the choir were built in the late gothic era. The southern wing of the choir houses a burial chapel with raised sarcophagi . The chapel is decorated with allegorical paintings. A northern wing of the choir was later built and used as a burial chapel for Peder Skram. The northern wing was demolished in 1856, and the graves therein were moved to the churchyard. A memorial to Peder Skram and his wife was designed by Otto Evens and erected in 1886. The church was largely renovated during the renaissance when the choir was replaced and a church porch was built. The building materials for the project came from the recently demolish Vrold Church (Vrold Kirke) and were donated by King Frederik II to Niels Skram. The upper part of the church's tower was rebuilt in 1789, when its spire was added. The outside of the church door is adorned with two wooden carvings: a lion's head by Mogens Bøggild and a