Läby Church

Uppsala, Sweden

Läby Church is located on the main road between Uppsala and Sala, and is the rural church closest to Uppsala city.

Although Läby Church certainly dates from the Middle Ages, its history is not known in any detail. Its origins may have been a Romanesque church, and according to some sources the oldest part of the church are from the 13th century. The church has furthermore been partially reconstructed and expanded at later times, but as to the question of what was built when there seems to be no consensus. The tower roof lantern at least seems to have been built at the beginning of the 19th century.

In 1890 the parish was merged with neighbouring Vänge parish, and the congregation moved to Vänge Church. Läby Church was abandoned and left in ruin. In the 1920s however the congregation decided to move back to its old church, and reconstruction works in the National Romantic style were begun under the leadership of architect Birger Jonzon. Archbishop Nathan Söderblom was involved in bringing the old church back to life. The restored church was opened again in 1928. Furnishings which had been removed were returned and the church received a new decorated ceiling.

The church is one of the smallest in the diocese. It is a simple hall church with a medieval nave and sacristy. The construction material is fieldstone, and the roof is made of shake. Internally, the church is characterised by the undecorated walls, the flat ceiling and the curious pulpit, built in 1753 on top of a medieval altar and constructed by carpenter Magnus Granlund. The latter reflects a pietist tradition within Lutheranism that places the oral sermon in the centre of the life of the church. A triumphal cross from the 12th century originally from Läby Church is currently on display at the Swedish History Museum.

References:

Comments

Your name



Address

Läby, Uppsala, Sweden
See all sites in Uppsala

Details

Founded: 13th century
Category: Religious sites in Sweden
Historical period: Consolidation (Sweden)

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

Rating

3.8/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Hylaeus (4 years ago)
Neat church. One of Uppsala County's smallest churches
Eric A.L. Axner (5 years ago)
Handsome church with a petite graveyard.
bodil karlsson (6 years ago)
Google Spanare (7 years ago)
krister Ericsson (9 years ago)
Nice little church.
Powered by Google

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Historic Site of the week

Visby Cathedral

Visby Cathedral (also known as St. Mary’s Church) is the only survived medieval church in Visby. It was originally built for German merchants and inaugurated in 1225. Around the year 1350 the church was enlarged and converted into a basilica. The two-storey magazine was also added then above the nave as a warehouse for merchants.

Following the Reformation, the church was transformed into a parish church for the town of Visby. All other churches were abandoned. Shortly after the Reformation, in 1572, Gotland was made into its own Diocese, and the church designated its cathedral.

There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.