Vallstena Church

Vallstena, Sweden

The western part of the nave and the church tower are the oldest parts of the asymmetrical Vallstena church. They date from the early 13th century. A new chancel arch was built at the middle of the same century, and around circa 1300 the new choir was built. Reconstruction of the nave also started around this time; the original plan seems to have been to replace the entire nave with a new, larger nave but for some reason the work came to a halt. Similar, half-rebuilt churches are relatively common on Gotland. The sacristy was also built at this time. The interior of the church was decorated with church frescos during the 15th century.

The church and its cemetery is surrounded by a low wall, with three lychgates. The oldest of these dates from the 13th century and display some original sculptured details.

The baptismal font is the oldest fitting of the church, dating from the middle of the 13th century. The altarpiece dates from the 14th century and was acquired when the new choir was inaugurated. From the same century dates a crucifix, as well as a richly decorated chest for donations for the poor. From the 14th century are also to tombstones on either side of the altar, carrying inscriptions in both Latin and Old Gutnish; the latter in runes. A few 14th century wooden statues depicting saints originally from Vallstena Church are today housed in Gotland Museum in Visby.

References:

Comments

Your name



Address

624, Vallstena, Sweden
See all sites in Vallstena

Details

Founded: 13th century
Category: Religious sites in Sweden
Historical period: Consolidation (Sweden)

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

Rating

3.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Peter Hagström (3 months ago)
Daniel rosenqvist (15 months ago)
Pia Stålhammar (17 months ago)
Anna Jansson (17 months ago)
Erik Svensson (5 years ago)
Powered by Google

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Historic Site of the week

Clementinum

The Clementinum is a historic complex of buildings in Prague. Until recently the complex hosted the National, University and Technical libraries, the City Library also being located nearby on Mariánské Náměstí. The Technical library and the Municipal library have moved to the Prague National Technical Library at Technická 6 since 2009. It is currently in use as the National Library of the Czech Republic.

Its history dates from the existence of a chapel dedicated to Saint Clement in the 11th century. A Dominican monastery was founded in the medieval period, which was transformed in 1556 to a Jesuit college. In 1622 the Jesuits transferred the library of Charles University to the Klementinum, and the college was merged with the University in 1654. The Jesuits remained until 1773, when the Klementinum was established as an observatory, library, and university by the Empress Maria Theresa of Austria.