Färentuna Church was built around the year 1175. The nave was enlarged in the 15th century when the church was under the protection of Karl Knutsson Bonde. The enlargement was made for his daughter’s weddings because the church was too small for all people. The latest notable reconstruction was made in 1732, when the medieval tower was replaced by the present wooden cap.
The pulpit of Färentuna church was made in 1701 as the monument of Carl XII’s victory in Narva battle. The oldest sculpture is a wooden Madonna carved in the 13th century. The runestone fragments U 20 and U 21, made in the 11th century, can be seen in the church wall to the left of the front gate. Together with the Hillersjö stone and the Snottsta and Vreta stones Färentuna runestones tells the story of the family of Gerlög and Inga. All of the Färentuna runestones are inscribed in the younger futhark.
References:Visby Cathedral (also known as St. Mary’s Church) is the only survived medieval church in Visby. It was originally built for German merchants and inaugurated in 1225. Around the year 1350 the church was enlarged and converted into a basilica. The two-storey magazine was also added then above the nave as a warehouse for merchants.
Following the Reformation, the church was transformed into a parish church for the town of Visby. All other churches were abandoned. Shortly after the Reformation, in 1572, Gotland was made into its own Diocese, and the church designated its cathedral.
There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.