Vall Church ( sv, Valls kyrka) is a medieval church 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 ...
. The largely Romanesque church dates from the 13th century. It belongs to the
Diocese of Visby.
History and architecture
Vall Church is a largely
Romanesque church that dates from the 13th century. It was built in three phases. Oldest is 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 ...
with 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 ...
, and 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 ...
, dating from the early part of the century. The tower was begun during the middle of the century and made higher at the end of the century.
The church is a relatively well-preserved Romanesque building, with a tower that is unusually tall in comparison with similar churches on Gotland. All the church portals are
Romanesque, and of these the north portal of the tower is the most noteworthy. Inside, the vaults of the nave are supported by a single central pillar, whose decoration is reminiscent of the decoration in the choir of
Visby Cathedral
Visby Cathedral ( sv, Visby domkyrka), formally Visby Saint Mary's Cathedral (''Visby S:ta Maria domkyrka'') is a cathedral within the Church of Sweden, seat of the Diocese of Visby, Bishop of Visby. It lies in the centre of Visby, the main town ...
. In the tower base there is a separate chamber with a
hagioscope
A hagioscope (from Gr. ''άγιος'', holy, and ''σκοπεῖν'', to see) or squint is an architectural term denoting a small splayed opening or tunnel at seated eye-level, through an internal masonry dividing wall of a church in an obliq ...
opening towards the nave. Similar chambers can be found e.g. in
Bro and
Martebo churches. Remains of medieval
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 ...
panes exist in one of the church windows. In the south wall of the apse sits a niche with a pair of doors from circa 1300. The doors are richly carved and carry
runic inscriptions. 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 from 1684, and made in
Burgsvik
Burgsvik is a locality situated in Öja in the Swedish island of Gotland with 350 inhabitants in 2014. Burgsvik lies in the southern part of the island of Gotland. The Burgsvik beds are a geological sequence found there.
References
Exter ...
, while 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). ...
dates from the 12th century and is a work by the Romanesque artist
Majestatis
Majestatis ( la, Magister Majestatis Domini, ''The Master of Christ in Majesty'', usually shortened to Majestatis and sometimes referred to as the Tryde Master, fl. second half of the 12th century) was a Romanesque stone sculptor and the creator o ...
. 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 ...
is a work from the early 18th century. In the church floor there is also the tombstone of Peter Harding, who led the peasant faction during a civil war on Gotland in 1288. The oldest of the church bells, finally, dates from 1443 and had belonged to
Hogrän Church
Hogrän Church ( sv, Hogräns kyrka) is a medieval church in Hogrän on the Swedish island of Gotland. It was built in stages between the 12th and 14th century, and contains several medieval church fittings. It belongs to the Church of Sweden and l ...
.
References
Further reading
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External links
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{{Churches on Gotland
Churches in Gotland County
Churches in the Diocese of Visby
Romanesque architecture in Sweden
Churches converted from the Roman Catholic Church to the Church of Sweden