Endre Church ( sv, Endre kyrka) is a medieval church in

Endre Endre is a Hungarian boy name, its origin is from old Turkish, can be given by name and surname. Its English form is Andrew. Endre may refer to: People Hungary Endre is a Hungarian masculine given name. It is a Hungarian form of ''Andrew'' an ...

on the Swedish 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 ...

, in the

Diocese of Visby The Diocese of Visby ( sv, Visby stift) is a division of the Church of Sweden consisting of the island of Gotland. Its seat is Visby Cathedral located in the largest town on Gotland, Visby. The Bishop of Visby is also responsible for the episcop ...

, built from the 12th to early 14th century. It contains medieval murals and several medieval furnishings, and belongs to the

Church of Sweden The Church of Sweden ( sv, Svenska kyrkan) is an Evangelical Lutheran national church in Sweden. A former state church, headquartered in Uppsala, with around 5.6 million members at year end 2021, it is the largest Christian denomination in Sw ...

History and architecture

The presently visible church was preceded by an older, Romanesque church. Of this church, only the tower, built in the 12th century and heightened in the 14th, remains. A few stone sculptures have also been re-used in the later church, e.g. one sculpture depicting a

dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

and another a lion. These are now immured in the southern façade of the church. The rest of the church dates from the 13th century (the

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

and

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 ...

) and the early 14th (the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

). The building material of the church is

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

. Apart from the aforementioned

Romanesque sculpture Romanesque art is the art of Europe from approximately 1000 AD to the rise of the Gothic style in the 12th century, or later depending on region. The preceding period is known as the Pre-Romanesque period. The term was invented by 19th-century ...

s, the exterior of the church is also adorned with sculpted portals, both Romanesque and

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

in style. Internally, the church is decorated with medieval murals made by the artist known as the

Master of the Passion of Christ The Passion Master ( sv, Passionsmästaren) is the name used to refer to an anonymous fresco painter and his workshop, active on Gotland during the 15th century. Works in about fifty churches have been attributed to the artist. The style of the M ...

in the middle of the 15th century. The paintings were uncovered during a renovation in 1915. The church also have several preserved

stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

window panes, one of only a few cases of

medieval stained glass in Sweden The surviving amount of medieval stained glass in Sweden is relatively small, compared to some other European countries. There are in total 165 medieval stained glass panes with figurative depictions surviving in 37 churches, constituting a tota ...

still in its original location. The

altarpiece An altarpiece is an artwork such as a painting, sculpture or relief representing a religious subject made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting o ...

is furthermore medieval, from the late 14th century, as is a preserved

church tabernacle A tabernacle or sacrament house is a fixed, locked box in which the Eucharist (consecrated communion hosts) is stored as part of the "reserved sacrament" rite. A container for the same purpose, which is set directly into a wall, is called an ' ...

. The

triumphal cross A rood or rood cross, sometimes known as a triumphal cross, is a cross or crucifix, especially the large crucifix set above the entrance to the chancel of a medieval church. Alternatively, it is a large sculpture or painting of the crucifixion ...

dates from circa 1300, and 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). ...

, possibly made by the artist Hegvald, is a Romanesque piece from the 12th century, richly decorated. The church lies in a cemetery that is surrounded by a low

wall, in which a medieval

lychgate A lychgate, also spelled lichgate, lycugate, lyke-gate or as two separate words lych gate, (from Old English ''lic'', corpse), also ''wych gate'', is a gateway covered with a roof found at the entrance to a traditional English or English-style ch ...

still survives. Endre Church belongs to the Church of Sweden and lies within the Diocese of Visby.

References

External links

*
Official site
(in Swedish) {{Authority control Churches in Gotland County Churches in the Diocese of Visby 12th-century churches in Sweden Churches converted from the Roman Catholic Church to the Church of Sweden

History and architecture

References

Further reading

External links