Endre Church
| Endre Church | |
|---|---|
Endre kyrka | |
 Endre Church, external view | |
  Endre Church Location on Gotland | |
| 57°36′37″N 18°27′55″E / 57.61026°N 18.46535°E | |
| Country | Sweden |
| Denomination | Church of Sweden |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Visby |
Endre Church (Swedish: Endre kyrka) is a medieval Lutheran church in Endre on the Swedish island of Gotland, in the Diocese of Visby. It was first built and consecrated as a Catholic church, but then taken for Lutheran worship at the reformation in the 16th century.
History and architecture
The presently visible church was preceded by an older, Romanesque church. Of this church, only the tower, built in the 12th century and heightened in the 14th, remains. A few stone sculptures have also been re-used in the later church, e.g. one sculpture depicting a dragon and another a lion. These are now immured in the southern façade of the church. The rest of the church dates from the 13th century (the choir and sacristy) and the early 14th (the nave).[1] The building material of the church is limestone.[2]
Apart from the aforementioned Romanesque sculptures, the exterior of the church is also adorned with sculpted portals, both Romanesque and Gothic in style.[1]
Internally, the church is decorated with frescos made by the artist known as the Master of the Passion of Christ in the middle of the 15th century. The frescos were uncovered during a renovation in 1915. The church also have several preserved stained glass window panes from the Middle Ages. The altarpiece is furthermore medieval, from the late 14th century, as is a preserved church tabernacle. The triumphal cross dates from circa 1300, and the baptismal font, possibly made by the artist Hegvald, is a Romanesque piece from the 12th century, richly decorated.[1]
The church lies in a cemetery that is surrounded by a low limestone wall, in which a medieval lychgate still survives.[3]
Gallery
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One of the original stained glass window panes -
Interior view towards the choir -
Interior view towards the west
References
- ^ a b c Lagerlöf, Erland (1973). Lagerlöf, Erland (ed.). Gotlands kyrkor (in Swedish). Uddevalla: Rabén & Sjögren. pp. 125–128. ISBN 9129410355.
- ^ "Endre kyrka". Region Gotland. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
- ^ "Endre kyrka". Church of Sweden. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
External links
Media related to Endre Church at Wikimedia Commons- Official site (in Swedish)
