Tycho was born at his family's ancestral seat of Knutstorp Castle (Danish: "Knudstrup borg"; Swedish: "Knutstorps borg"), about eight kilometres north of Svalöv in then Danish Scania. He was the oldest of 12 siblings, 8 of whom lived to adulthood, including Steen Brahe. His twin brother died before being baptized. Tycho later wrote an ode in Latin to his dead twin, which was printed in 1572 as his first published work. An epitaph, originally from Knutstorp, but now on a plaque near the church door, shows the whole family, including Tycho as a boy.