Ribe Tourist Attractions
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JutlandRibe, one of the oldest towns in the country, lies on the Ribe Å, not far from the place where the river enters the North Sea in the Bay of Fanø.HistoryRibe developed on an estuary which formed one of the few harbors on the west coast of Jutland.
Cathedral
In the center of Ribe on the Torvet stands the Romanesque Cathedral, built about 1200 and later rebuilt on several occasions. Today it is the only five-aisled church in Denmark. There is a panoramic view from the 50m/164ft high tower, which has a carillon. The relief above the door shows Jesus being taken down from the Cross. In the light and airy interior can be seen tombs and epitaphs including one erected by Valdemar the Victorious for his son who died in 1231. Note also the beautiful wood-carving of St George and the Dragon, the pulpit of 1579, a bronze font and the choir-stalls. On Cathedral Square stand statues of Hans Adolph Brorson, who was Bishop of Ribe in the 18th century, and of the reformer Hans Tausen.
Hans Tausens Hus (closed)
ATTRACTION IS CLOSED.Opposite the Romanesque Cathedral of Ribe stands Hans Tausens Hus, an old timbered building. The house is a relic of Denmark's oldest existing episcopal see (16th C.). Here Hans Tausen (1494-1561), a disciple of Luther and the first Danish Reformer, spent the last 10 years of his life. Today the house is an archaeological museum, displaying Viking finds including hand-crafted objects and merchants' goods.
Old Town Hall
The Old Town Hall of Ribe (1496), to the southeast of the Cathedral, was originally a private residence. Anders Bording (1619-77), who published the first Danish newspaper, was born here. The building served as the Town Hall from 1709 until the administration was moved in 1966, although there are still collections of council items to be seen in the former Council Chamber. The former debtors' prison is now a museum of weapons etc.
St Catherine's Church and Abbey
East of the Old Town Hall of Ribe lies St Catherine's Church (Skt. Catharinæ Kirke), part of a Dominican abbey. The present church dates from the 15th century but incorporates remains of the original building of 1228. Passing through the church the visitor will come to the medieval monastery court which is surrounded by two cloisters lying one above the other; in the lower cloister note particularly the arcades with pointed arches and vaulting. After the Reformation the priory served as a hospital until 1864, then as a home for people living on their own (not open to the public). Outside the church stands a fountain with a statue of St Catherine, patron saint of Dominicans. The fountain was the work of Anders Bundgaard (ca. 1930).
Quedens Gård Museum (closed)
ATTRACTION IS CLOSED.From Ribe's Torvet the street called Overdammen leads to Quedens Gård (ca. 1580), a merchant's house with four wings. The Classical dwelling was built 200 years later. Today Quedens Gård is a museum - with interiors of 1580, a 19th century citizen's home as well as documents on commerce, handicrafts and industry. The museum also mounts a special exhibition on Ribe in the Middle Ages.
Museum of Art
Near the excavation site, in Skt. Nicolaj Gade in Ribe, will be found the Museum of Art. It contains sculptures and paintings by Danish artists of the "Golden Age" (first half of the 19th century) as well as later works.Michael Ancher's picture 'Baptism of a Child" is representative of the Skagen school; there are also works by Funen artists and a selection of paintings of Ribe scenes.
Vikinger Museum
The Ribes Vikinger Museum delves into the viking history of Denmark's oldest town. There are dioramas and models which recreate Ribe in the 1500's, a section of a full size Viking ship and parts of the marketplace. Thousands of artifacts from the area are on display.
Skibbroen Harbor
Skibbroen, along the river Ribe Å, is Ribe's harbor, which today is used only for leisure purposes.Nearby lies the "Johanne Dan", a ship designed to sail through the shallows. Every Wednesday in summer a market is held at Skibbroen.
Flood Column
The flat marshland has been subject to flooding by storms for many years. On the Ribe harbor a Flood Column, the Stormflodssøjle, shows the height reached by the water in the floods of 1634, when it rose more than 6m/20ft above the norm; countless houses were destroyed and several thousand people lost their lives. In 1976 the dike was strengthened.
Riberhus Castle
On a hill to the northwest of Ribe can be seen the excavated remains of Riberhus Castle (Riberhus Slotsbanke); built in the 12th C. it was for several centuries a residence of the Danish kings. All that remains are the ruins of a fortress, the moat and a statue of Queen Dagmar, the consort of Valdemar the Victorious (1170-1241).
Viking Center
The Ribe Viking Center is 2 km south of town. Several buildings are reconstructed based on archaeological evidence found in the area. There is a marketplace from 720 AD, a manor farm built to resemble that seen around 980 AD and a section of Ribe itself around 825 AD. Visitors can see blacksmiths working in the forge, bakers in the kitchen and others performing tasks typical of the era.
Lintrup - Safari Zoo Park
This private zoo-park has more than 100 species of birds and animals including monkeys, birds and large cats.
Toy Museum (closed)
ATTRACTION IS CLOSED.At the Ribe Toy Museum, thousands of toys are on display in a two-floor exhibition space. Among the number of sections there are dolls, cars, motorcycles and mechanical and wooden toys.
Hojgadegrunden - Theater and Clowning Festival
This annual three-day festival takes place in late May.
Surroundings
Vester Vedsted
To the southwest of Ribe, near the coast, lies Vester Vedsted. The mud-flats which stretch from Blåvands Huk in Denmark to Den Helder in Holland are the main resting-place and winter home in Europe for a plethora of waterfowl. In just one square meter of mud-flats live several thousand microscopically small animals and plants on which the birds feed. A chain of islands separates the mud flats, most of which are a conservation area, from the North Sea.
Wadden Sea Centre
The Wadden Sea Centre allows visitors to discover the Wadden Sea's dynamic nature, all-embracing ecosystem and particular culture, all influenced by the constant danger of violent storm floods. Learn about the great storm disasters of 1362 and 1634, the tidal basin in the yard or take part in the Nature School programs.
Mandø Island
Offshore near Ribe lies the little island of Mandø, which can be reached only at low tide from Vester Vedsted in a bus drawn by a tractor. On Mandø there are some interesting exhibitions on the theme of nature conservancy and ornithology, as well as a mud-flats exhibition in the Mandø Center, which is open to visitors every day in summer. On the island breed terns, sandpipers, waders and ducks, including eiders. From Mandø trips are arranged to Koresand, a sandbank in the mid flats west of the island; the trips last about three hours and include a visit to the seal reserve.
Map of Ribe Attractions
Map - Ribe
