Forshem Church
The Forshem Church lies in the Swedish municipality of Götene about 27 kilometers southwest of the city of Mariestad .
history
The Romanesque stone church was built in the middle of the 12th century. In the 13th century the choir was enlarged and two cross arms were added in the 1760s.
The church is particularly interesting from a cultural and historical point of view because of the six stone reliefs from the 12th century, which are ascribed to the same master stonemason who created the reliefs for the Cathedral of Skara .
During restoration work in 1929, wall paintings from the 17th century were discovered that were covered with lime paint.
architecture
The Romanesque tympanum above the entrance, which is located at the foot of the church tower, dates from the time the church was built. The relief shows Jesus Christ in the middle, on his left (right from the viewer) the donor is depicted as a nobleman, possibly as a crusader, on his right you can see the stonemason. Neither of the two is named by name.
The tympanum of the inner portal to the transept shows the Latin inscription: “ISTA ECCLESIA SIT IN HONORE DOMINI NOSTRI IHESU CHRISTI ET SANCTI SEPULCRI” (translation: “This church was built in honor of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Sepulcher”). A relief shows Christ in the middle between Peter and Paul . Below is the Latin alphabet . The runic alphabet continued to exist alongside the Latin alphabet for several hundred years after the relief was created.
On the front of the south transept you can see a representation of the conversion of St. Martin of Tours as a symbol of mercy ; next to it a portrait of St. Nikolaus von Myra , who was venerated as the patron saint of seafarers, as indicated by a small ship in relief. The inscription next to it means: “St. Nikolaus, please for us before the Lord. ”Also in the south transept, to the left of the entrance, is a Maltese or St. John's Cross , which could have come from a donor in the 12th century. This type of cross, which is very rare in Sweden, can also be found on the St. Helena Chapel at the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem .
Two reliefs on the north transept and the church portal depict scenes from the passion story :
- Crucifixion and Descent from the Cross, at which Joseph of Arimathäa embraces the body of Christ ( Mt 27.57-60 EU ; Mk 15.43-46 EU ; Lk 23.50-54 EU ; Joh 19.38-42 EU );
- Christ in the grave. Christ proclaims salvation to souls in the underworld ( 1 Pet 3.19 EU ).
Another representation shows the "Marien am Grabe", a scene on Easter morning in which the three women come and find the grave empty - with the exception of an angel in white robes. The soldiers lie around them, passed out “as if they were dead”. Christ rises from the scene on the right as a symbol of the resurrection.
Furnishing
The baptismal font is a replica of the Romanesque original from the 12th century.
In the choir there are bridal benches from the 17th century.
Surroundings
Close to the church are an 18th century rectory and one of Sweden's oldest inns, Forshems gästgivargård from 1564.
literature
- J. Svanberg, B. Westrin: Forshems kyrka . 2002.
- Claes Theliander: Det medeltida Västergötland: en arkeologisk guidebok . Historiska Media, Lund 2004, ISBN 91-85057-06-1
Web links
- Forshems kyrka. Svenska kyrkan, Götene pastorat, accessed December 14, 2015 (Swedish).
- Forshems kyrka. In: Bebyggelseregistret. Riksantikvarieämbetet, June 19, 1995, accessed February 9, 2016 (Swedish).
Coordinates: 58 ° 37 ′ 11.3 " N , 13 ° 29 ′ 23.9" E