Akebäck Church
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Akebäck Church ( sv, Akebäcks kyrka) is a medieval church in
Akebäck Akebäck is a populated area, a socken (not to be confused with parish), on the Swedish island of Gotland. It comprises the same area as the Registration districts in Sweden, administrative Akebäck District, established on 1January 2016. Geogr ...
on the island of
Gotland Gotland (, ; ''Gutland'' in Gutnish), also historically spelled Gottland or Gothland (), is Sweden's largest island. It is also a province, county, municipality, and diocese. The province includes the islands of Fårö and Gotska Sandön to the ...
, Sweden. It's a largely Romanesque church and its main construction period was at the end of the 12th century. The church is part of the Diocese of Visby within the Church of Sweden.


History and architecture

Akebäck Church was constructed of plastered limestone and is, with the exception of the
sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is usually located ...
, a completely Romanesque church. Most of the building was done at the end of the 12th century, with the tower added during the mid-13th century. The church was inaugurated in 1149. Only the sacristy is considerably later, from 1931. The church has an almost square choir, a semi-circular apse and a rectangular nave. It has a simple interior. Notable are the original ceramic pots which have been immured in the vault of the church, as a way to improve the
acoustics Acoustics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including topics such as vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician ...
. Another unusual detail is a stone sculpture depicting a stonemason lying down which is immured in the church portal. According to tradition, it was made in memory of one of the men who worked at the church but fell and died during the construction; scholars have suggested that it may on the other hand simply be a stone that was placed in the wrong direction with the picture lying down instead of standing up. Among the furnishings, the altar is unusual in that while it is from the 17th century, the crucifix in the middle is a re-used medieval cross, from the 15th century. The
baptismal font A baptismal font is an article of church furniture used for baptism. Aspersion and affusion fonts The fonts of many Christian denominations are for baptisms using a non-immersive method, such as aspersion (sprinkling) or affusion (pouring). ...
is from the 13th century. Of later date is a chandelier, donated in 1850 by a carpenter as a votive gift, "in thanks to
divine providence In theology, Divine Providence, or simply Providence, is God's intervention in the Universe. The term ''Divine Providence'' (usually capitalized) is also used as a title of God. A distinction is usually made between "general providence", which ...
, that kept him safe during fourteen years abroad". The smaller of the two church bells was donated in 1993. The church underwent a renovation in 1931–32 under a proposal by architect Sven Brandel (1886–1931). During the renovation, a large picture stone was found immured in the church. It was extracted and is now displayed outside the church. Akebäck Church belongs to the Church of Sweden and lies within the Diocese of Visby.


References


Further reading

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External links

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Official site (in Swedish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Akeback Church Romanesque architecture in Sweden Churches in Gotland County Churches in the Diocese of Visby Churches converted from the Roman Catholic Church to the Church of Sweden 1149 establishments in Europe