Farstorp Church ( sv, Farstorps kyrka) is a medieval church in

Farstorp Farstorp is a locality village situated in Hässleholm Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 704 inhabitants in 2012. The well-preserved medieval Farstorp Church Farstorp Church ( sv, Farstorps kyrka) is a medieval church in Farstorp, in the ...

, in the province of

Skåne Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skåne C ...

, Sweden. It belongs to the

Diocese of Lund The Diocese of Lund ( sv, Lunds stift) is a diocese within the Church of Sweden which corresponds to the provinces of Blekinge and Skåne. There are 217 parishes within the diocese, the most significant number in any of the dioceses of the Chur ...

History and architecture

The first written sources to indicate a church in Farstorp are from 1241, but the presently visible church was built already during the second half of the 12th century. The broad western tower, nave, and apse are from this period. A

church porch A church porch is a room-like structure at a church's main entrance. A porch protects from the weather to some extent. Some porches have an outer door, others a simple gate, and in some cases the outer opening is not closed in any way. The porch ...

was added to the church some time during the late

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

but later destroyed. During the 15th century, the ceilings of 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 ...

and

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 ...

were replaced with

vault Vault may refer to: * Jumping, the act of propelling oneself upwards Architecture * Vault (architecture), an arched form above an enclosed space * Bank vault, a reinforced room or compartment where valuables are stored * Burial vault (enclosure ...

s; those of the nave were destroyed during a renovation in the 1830s and the present nave ceiling dates from 1941-42. The northern

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...

was also built in the 1830s. In contrast, the ceiling in the

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an ''exedra''. In ...

is original, dating from the time of the construction of the church. The

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its s ...

singer (1931-2002) is buried in the cemetery of the church.

Murals

The choir of the church is profusely decorated with medieval murals. The apse wall displays

Christ in Majesty Christ in Majesty or Christ in Glory ( la, Maiestas Domini) is the Western Christian image of Christ seated on a throne as ruler of the world, always seen frontally in the centre of the composition, and often flanked by other sacred figures, whos ...

surrounded by scenes from the Bible. On the wall separating the choir from the nave there are depictions of

Saint Olaf Olaf II Haraldsson ( – 29 July 1030), later known as Saint Olaf (and traditionally as St. Olave), was King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. Son of Harald Grenske, a petty king in Vestfold, Norway, he was posthumously given the title ''Rex Perpet ...

and

Saint Eric Eric IX, (Swedish: ''Erik Jedvardsson; Erik den helige; Sankt Erik''; d. 18 May 1160) also called Eric the Holy, Saint Eric, and Eric the Lawgiver, was a Swedish king in the 12th century, 1156–1160. The ''Roman Martyrology'' of the Catholic C ...

together with Christ crucified. The choir vault is decorated with a third set of murals dating from the end of the 15th century and made by the same artist who made the paintings in Everlöv Church. They depict scenes from the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

. Elsewhere in the church, fragments of paintings exist in the ground floor of the tower, including a possible depiction of Saint Catherine.

Furnishings

A number of medieval wooden sculptures originally in Farstorp Church are today in the historical museum of

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion altar bell In the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, Lutheranism, Methodism and Anglicanism, an altar bell (also Mass bell, sacring bell, Sacryn bell, saints' bell, sance-bell, or sanctus bell) is typically a small hand-held bell or set of bells. The prim ...

from 1586. The furnishings still ''in situ'' are all from after the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

. The lavish

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 ...

was made at the end of the 16th century, possibly 1593, and was altered in 1733. The

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...

dates from 1593 and likewise altered in 1733, and again in 1921-23. 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). ...

from the 17th century was made locally. The present

pew A pew () is a long bench (furniture), bench seat or enclosed box, used for seating Member (local church), members of a Church (congregation), congregation or choir in a Church (building), church, synagogue or sometimes a courtroom. Overview ...

s were made in 1732. The

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

is from 1965 but uses the facade of the earlier organ, made in 1861.

References

External links

*
Official site (in Swedish)
{{Churches in Scania Churches in Skåne County Churches in the Diocese of Lund