ABSTRACT
A decade ago Michael H. Gelting became interested in the manuscripts containing the Danish provincial laws dating from the late twelfth and the first part of the thirteenth centuries. The Church Law for Zealand is known in two editions: an old and a linguistically modernized one. The linguistically modernized edition of the two Zealand laws, both Valdemar's Law for Zealand and the Church Law for Zealand, is also a structural modernization of the old version. Like the Church Law for Zealand, the Church Law for Zealand is known in several editions. The dating of the Church Law for Scania into an old edition and a linguistically modernized edition respectively follows the editions of the secular Law of Scania. According to the introduction to the Church Law for Zealand, the law was laid down by Archbishop Absalon, but in the epilogue following the last chapter it is said that afterwards the Church Law was confirmed at the provincial court.
