Hällestad Church ( sv, Hällestads kyrka) is a medieval

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

church in Torna Hällestad in the province of

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

, 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 church probably dates from the 12th century, but little remains of the original church building due to subsequent reconstructions throughout the centuries. 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 the

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 ...

s seen today date from the 19th century. Immured in the church are three

runestone A runestone is typically a raised stone with a runic inscription, but the term can also be applied to inscriptions on boulders and on bedrock. The tradition began in the 4th century and lasted into the 12th century, but most of the runestones da ...

s from the 11th century, the so-called Hällestad Runestones. The church is also notable for its rich internal decoration of medieval murals. These date from circa 1460 and executed by Nils Håkansson.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hallestad Church Churches in Skåne County Churches in the Diocese of Lund Churches converted from the Roman Catholic Church to the Church of Sweden Church frescos in Sweden