the exact foundation of Bjerning Church is unknown, but since the original part of the church, nave and choir is a typical Romanesque ashlar-church, it is reasonable to assume that is was erected around the year 1200. Fixtures in the church also confirms this, like a figure of an archbishop in wood, which has been dated to around 1250, and a figure of Mary and child from around 1350.
On November 17th 1937, a violent fire broke out, and everything flammable, such as altar, altarpiece, pulpit, benches etc. were totally destroyed. Only the roof over the sacristy avoided the flames.
Today, the church bears the marks of the 1938 and 1939 restoration. At the alter, a crucifix-group stands on a predella with Christ on a throne. The granite baptismal font was carved in 1939 as a replica of the old, and the pulpit is also a fairly accurate replica of the one destroyed in the fire.
References:
The Church of St Donatus name refers to Donatus of Zadar, who began construction on this church in the 9th century and ended it on the northeastern part of the Roman forum. It is the largest Pre-Romanesque building in Croatia.
The beginning of the building of the church was placed to the second half of the 8th century, and it is supposed to have been completed in the 9th century. The Zadar bishop and diplomat Donat (8th and 9th centuries) is credited with the building of the church. He led the representations of the Dalmatian cities to Constantinople and Charles the Great, which is why this church bears slight resemblance to Charlemagne's court chapels, especially the one in Aachen, and also to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. It belongs to the Pre-Romanesque architectural period.
The circular church, formerly domed, is 27 m high and is characterised by simplicity and technical primitivism.