Akebäck Church ( sv, Akebäcks kyrka) is a medieval church in Akebäck on the island of Gotland, 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 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 episc ...

within 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

Akebäck Church was constructed of plastered limestone and is, with the exception of the sacristy, 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 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 sp ...

, a semi-circular

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''. ...

and a rectangular

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 ...

. 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. 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 An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paga ...

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 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, 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 A picture stone, image stone or figure stone is an ornate slab of stone, usually limestone, which was raised in Germanic Iron Age or Viking Age Scandinavia, and in the greatest number on Gotland.The article ''Bildstenar'' in ''Nationalencykloped ...

was found immured in the church. It was extracted and is now displayed outside the church. Akebäck Church belongs to the

and lies within the

References

External links

*
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

History and architecture

References

Further reading

External links