Lekeryds kyrka

The stone church was built in the 12th century with thick, metre-deep walls, a nave, a narrower chancel and a semicircular apse, though originally without a tower. Little is recorded of its history in the following centuries, but by the 1200s a triumphal crucifix had been added, followed by a shrine to the Virgin Mary in the 1400s. At the time it belonged to the Diocese of Linköping, and in 1527 it was reconsecrated by Bishop Hans Brask, when it reportedly held five altars dedicated to different saints alongside the high altar.

The medieval font, carved around 1200 in sandstone and attributed to the so-called Bestiarius workshop, is said to be as old as the church itself and now stands in the chancel. Also from the earliest period is an iron-bound oak door leading to the sacristy, marked with a runic inscription naming a "Johan", possibly an early priest of Lekeryd.

Among the notable furnishings is a large altar shrine attributed to a north German master around 1500, its painted and carved panels depicting scenes from the Old and New Testaments along with various saints. Alongside it hangs the older 13th-century triumphal crucifix, moved from its original position in the chancel arch to the south wall of the nave. A carved pulpit from the 1640s, decorated with figures of the four evangelists, stands opposite on the north side.

The present altarpiece, carved in 1764 by Johan Ullberg the Younger, shows a scene from the Last Supper and replaced the older medieval shrine as the main altar image; the shrine itself was retained and now hangs on the wall. Painted ceiling decorations of angels, added in 1782 by the painter Rosenblad of Gränna, still survive. In 1877 many later additions considered reminiscent of the pre-Reformation Catholic period were removed, and further restoration took place in 1922 and 1952, aiming where possible to reinstate earlier features.

The church has had several organs over the centuries, including an 18th-century instrument later moved to Lappland, and a 19th-century organ by Erik Nordström of Eksjö that was subsequently rebuilt and enlarged; a smaller mechanical chancel organ was added in the 1980s.