The Old House (Det Gamle Hus), Kirkestræde 20, Køge

A tiny 1500s dwelling in a medieval lane

The Old House on Kirkestræde 20 looks almost modest at first glance: a low, crooked half‑timbered building pressed close to the cobbled street. Yet this small structure is one of Denmark’s oldest dated non‑religious houses, its construction fixed to the year 1527 by an inscription uncovered above the door centuries later. In the 1500s, this was a simple rental dwelling in a growing market town, set among workshops, merchants and sailors heading to the harbour. The lane itself still feels intimate and slightly secretive. Timber facades lean towards each other, and the Old House seems to belong to a much smaller scale of daily life, when rooms were low, windows tiny and the street outside was the main stage of the day.

From simple ‘våning’ to protected monument

Originally, the building consisted of a single large room, part of a row of similar rental houses known as “våninger” or “boder”. It once had a twin house attached to its northern gable, creating a continuous line of small dwellings for townsfolk of modest means. Over time, additions on the rear formed a lean‑to with a kitchen and hearth, and the interior was divided into smaller chambers. By the late 1800s, the Old House had passed through a long succession of tenants, from a retired dragoon lieutenant to a 19th‑century skins trader. Layers of whitewash and alterations concealed its age until a renovation in 1888 scraped away 14 coatings of lime and revealed the carved date lintel, confirming its 16th‑century origins and sparking interest in its preservation.

Rescued, restored and re‑roofed

In 1908, plans for a new almshouse complex threatened the survival of the Old House and its neighbour. No. 22 was demolished, but No. 20 was saved at the last moment through the intervention of heritage authorities, who recognised its rarity as an early urban dwelling. A careful restoration followed, removing later rear extensions and replacing ordinary roof tiles with traditional monk‑and‑nun tiles more in keeping with its age. The timber frame was stabilised, the facade straightened just enough to be safe, yet the building deliberately retains its gentle sagging lines and time‑softened beams. In 1918 it was granted protected status, securing its place as a listed monument within Køge’s historic centre.

A children’s library with a 500‑year memory

Since the mid‑20th century the Old House has been closely linked with the neighbouring Køge Library. The last private resident moved out in the 1950s, and the building was adapted as part of the library complex, now hosting a cosy children’s section behind its tiny windows. Low ceilings, exposed beams and uneven floors give story hours and reading nooks a special atmosphere that feels far removed from a modern institutional space. The deep cellar below, built of massive fieldstones and reached via a stone stair, has become an atmospheric venue for small exhibitions and events. Over the centuries, the street level outside has risen more than a metre, so the basement that once sat closer to the surface now feels hidden, like a pocket of the 1500s preserved beneath today’s town.

Reading the layers of Køge’s past

Seen from the outside, the Old House is a compact lesson in urban history. Its dark timber posts and white infill fields recall a time when half‑timber was the standard town building method, and its small scale contrasts with grander merchants’ houses elsewhere in Køge. Standing here, you sense the social layers of the town: humble renters in this lane, traders on the market square, and soldiers quartered nearby. Even as it serves a very contemporary purpose as a library space for children, the building quietly carries five centuries of stories—of tenants, renovations, near‑demolition and rescue. Pausing before its crooked facade, you are looking at a rare survivor: a lived‑in fragment of everyday 16th‑century Denmark still woven into the daily life of a modern town.