Södra Råda Old Church ( sv, Södra Råda gamla kyrka) was an early 14th-century timbered church in the parish of
Södra Råda
Södra Skogsägarna, trading as Södra, is a forestry cooperative based in Växjö, Sweden. More than 52,000 forest owners in southern Sweden are members of the economic association that is Södra. They own just over half of all privately owned ...
in
Gullspång Municipality
Gullspång Municipality (''Gullspångs kommun'') is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the towns of Gullspång and Hova.
The present municipality was formed through the amalgamation of the former ...
,
Västra Götaland in
Sweden. It was one of the oldest preserved wooden churches in the country.
The paintings covering the walls and the trefoil-shaped wooden ceiling of the church were considered one of the best and best-preserved examples of Scandinavian wall-painting from the Middle Ages. The oldest, anonymous, paintings in the chancel dated to 1323. Later paintings in the nave dated from 1493 and were signed by a painter named .
The church was burnt down on 12 November 2001. A mentally ill man convicted for the murder of a five-year-old girl in 2003 also confessed to and was convicted for the burning of the church.
A project led by the
Swedish National Heritage Board
The Swedish National Heritage Board ( sv, Riksantikvarieämbetet; RAÄ) is a Swedish government agency responsible for World Heritage Sites and other national heritage monuments and historical environments. It is governed by the Ministry of Cu ...
has since excavated the site, and a reconstruction of the church, using medieval methods of construction, has been begun.
References
External links
Södra Råda Riksantikvarieämbetet
*http://www.dn.se/DNet/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=147&a=205488 and
*http://www.dn.se/DNet/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=147&a=198810 (newspaper coverage in Dagens Nyheter of the trial against the murderer/arsonist)
14th-century churches in Sweden
Churches in Västra Götaland County
Churches in the Diocese of Skara
Church frescos in Sweden
2001 fires in Europe
Wooden churches in Sweden
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