Voxtorp Church () is a

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

round church A round church is a church with a completely circular plan, thus a rotunda in architectural terms. There are many Nordic round churches in Sweden and Denmark (notably the island of Bornholm); round churches were popular in Scandinavia in the ...

Kalmar County Kalmar County () is a Counties of Sweden, county or ''län'' in southern Sweden. It borders the counties of Kronoberg County, Kronoberg, Jönköping County, Jönköping, Blekinge County, Blekinge and Östergötland County, Östergötland. To the ...

in Sweden. It belongs to the parish of Halltorp-Voxtorps in the

Diocese of Växjö The Diocese of Växjö () is one of 13 dioceses within the Lutheran Church of Sweden. Its episcopal see is located in the city of Växjö. The diocese was established in the 12th century as a Roman Catholic bishopric, but was taken over by the Ch ...

History and architecture

The church was built around 1240 in tufted sandstone and cobblestone and painted with white paint. It may have been one storey higher. It is a so-called

fortified church A fortified church is a church that is built to serve a defensive role in times of war. Such church (building), churches were specially designed to incorporate military features, such as thick walls, battlements, and embrasures. Others, such as t ...

and was built to serve multiple uses. Several such churches, that could be used for many purposes as places of worship, defense and also storage were during this time built along the east coast of

Småland Småland () is a historical Provinces of Sweden, province () in southern Sweden. Småland borders Blekinge, Scania, Halland, Västergötland, Östergötland and the island Öland in the Baltic Sea. The name ''Småland'' literally means "small la ...

and on Öland island. It is one of only eight

es in Sweden to survive to this day. It is located not far from Hagby Church, another round church with a similar history which probably pre-dates Voxtorp Church and may have served as a source of inspiration. The church building was altered during the 14th century, when the current

choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

and probably also

sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christianity, 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 us ...

were built. In 1667 the annular thin arch collapsed. The thin vault was then replaced with a flat roof. In 1895, the medieval armory in the south was demolished and replaced with an armory in the west. At the same time, the flat roof was torn down and replaced by a plaster dome. In 1958 the church suffered damage following being hit by

lightning Lightning is a natural phenomenon consisting of electrostatic discharges occurring through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions. One or both regions are within the atmosphere, with the second region sometimes occurring on ...

. Subsequently, renovated under the direction of architect Erik Lundgren (1895-1969).

Gallery

Voxtorps kyrka 0022.jpg, Church room to the west Voxtorps kyrka 0024.jpg, Choir with two consecration crosses painted on the wall. VoxtorpDSCF0988.JPG, Chancel window Voxtorps kyrka 0027.jpg, Pulpit Voxtorps kyrka 0030.jpg, Baptismal Voxtorps kyrka 0034.jpg, Saint Olof Voxtorps kyrka 0032.jpg, Former altarpiece Voxtorps kyrka 0036.jpg, Lighting fixture bearer

References

External links

Voxtorps kyrka website
{{coord, 56, 32, 18, N, 16, 08, 33, E, type:landmark_region:SE, display=title Churches in the Diocese of Växjö Churches in Kalmar County Fortified church buildings Kalmar Municipality