Strängnäs Cathedral is built mainly of bricks in the characteristic Scandinavian Brick Gothic style. The original church was built of wood, probably during the first decades of the 12th century, on a spot where pagan rituals used to take place and where the missionary Saint Eskil was killed during the mid 11th century. The wooden church was not rebuilt in stone and bricks until 1296, just after Strängnäs became a diocese. The cathedral was probably inaugurated by bishop Styrbjörn in 1334.
The oldest murals date from the 14th century. The Strängnäs Cathedral was enlarged in several phases during the 15th century and it was damaged by fire in 1473. Bishop Kort Rogge (1479-1501) donated two crucifixes which are still located in the cathedral. The larger one is made in Brussels around 1490. There are also many other significant medieval artefacts in the cathedral. The cathedral contains also the burials of Charles IX of Sweden and Maria of Palatinate-Simmern.
References:The Broch of Gurness is an Iron Age broch village. Settlement here began sometime between 500 and 200 BC. At the centre of the settlement is a stone tower or broch, which once probably reached a height of around 10 metres. Its interior is divided into sections by upright slabs. The tower features two skins of drystone walls, with stone-floored galleries in between. These are accessed by steps. Stone ledges suggest that there was once an upper storey with a timber floor. The roof would have been thatched, surrounded by a wall walk linked by stairs to the ground floor. The broch features two hearths and a subterranean stone cistern with steps leading down into it. It is thought to have some religious significance, relating to an Iron Age cult of the underground.
The remains of the central tower are up to 3.6 metres high, and the stone walls are up to 4.1 metres thick.