Levide Church, Levide, Sweden

Levide Church is a largely Romanesque church of a character unique for the countryside of Gotland. Parts of the choir, notably the area around the portal, is however comparable to the northern portal of Visby Cathedral in Visby, the main town of the island.

The oldest parts of the church are the aforementioned choir with its apse, dating from the late 12th century. The nave dates from the early 13th century while the tower was erected at the middle of the same century. The sacristy is the only part of the church which is not medieval.

The interior is divided into a nave and two aisles, divided by four massive pillars. The ceiling is supported by nine vaults. The interior thus forms a hall church, and the influences for the layout probably came from German churches of the time. A more direct model was probably what is today Visby Cathedral. The southern wall of the interior is decorated by frescos, probably from the middle of the 15th century and attributed to the so-called Master of the Passion of Christ. They depict apostles and saints, including the Scandinavian saints Ansgar and Bridget of Sweden. In addition, there are some purely decorative frescos, probably from the 13th century. A medieval processional cross (14th century) is also preserved in the church. Of later date is the altarpiece (1662-63) and a votive ship (1748).

References:

Wikipedia

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.

Magnus KARLSSON (10 months ago)
Like the others worth a visit

april evans (2 years ago)
Cemetery was really fun to walk through. Inside church was nice and pretty too.

Nahoj Grebdron (3 years ago)
always comes up on geoguessr so it's pretty

Eva Langley (4 years ago)
Nice church in Fardhem's åastorat with an absolutely fantastic organ

Uffe Berggren (5 years ago)

Levide Church

Address

Details

More Information

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Finest Norman castles in Italy

Exploring the History of Northern Poland

Discovering Slovenia's Historic Wonders

Historic Site of the week

Visby Cathedral