Västergarn Church () is a medieval

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

church in

Västergarn Västergarn is a populated area, a socken (not to be confused with parish), on the Swedish island of Gotland. It comprises the same area as the administrative Västergarn District, established on 1January 2016. Geography Västergarn is the nam ...

on the island of

Gotland Gotland (; ; ''Gutland'' in Gutnish), also historically spelled Gottland or Gothland (), is Sweden's largest island. It is also a Provinces of Sweden, province/Counties of Sweden, county (Swedish län), Municipalities of Sweden, municipality, a ...

, Sweden. It belongs to the

Diocese of Visby The Diocese of Visby () 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 episcopal oversight of ...

History and architecture

North of the presently visible church are the foundations of an earlier, Romanesque church. The current church, built in the middle of the 13th century, is only the

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 ...

of an envisioned, much larger church. It was never finished, perhaps due to a decline in local fortunes that set in with a civil war on Gotland in 1288. Most of the interior dates from the time after the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

. A noteworthy item is the

votive ship A votive ship, sometimes called a church ship, is a ship model displayed in a church (building), church. As a rule, votive ships are constructed and given as gifts to the church by seamen and ship builders. Votive ships are relatively common in ch ...

, dating from 1637.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vastergarn Church Churches in Gotland County Churches in the Diocese of Visby Churches converted from the Roman Catholic Church to the Church of Sweden