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Ods kyrka

Address
Stationsvägen 7, Östra Kyrkogatan
Municipality
Herrljunga Kommun
Denomination
Church of Sweden
Associated diocese
Diocese of Skara

Ods kyrka is a stone church in Herrljunga kommun, believed to date from the early 1100s and unusual for retaining a medieval porch. Alterations followed during the 1600s and 1700s, giving today's building its layered history.



The church stands on a slight rise and comprises a nave with a three-sided chancel to the east, a stone porch on the south wall, and a smaller timber porch to the west. A stone sacristy adjoins the chancel to the north, and all sections are covered with shingle-clad saddle roofs. The nave and original square chancel walls date to the 1100s, with the east wall of the early chancel still surviving. The south porch was added in the late medieval period, and further changes came in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries: the nave was lengthened westwards in 1743, the chancel rebuilt in its present three-sided form in 1758, and the timber west porch erected in 1810.

Inside, the church has a flat ceiling. During restoration work in 1915, fragments of medieval wall paintings were uncovered, with sections on the north wall attributed to the 1200s and those on the south wall to the 1500s. A further extensive restoration took place around 1950, after which the church was reconsecrated.

Among the furnishings, the sandstone font is thought to date from the 1100s and belongs to a small group of related fonts named after an example at Molla kyrka, decorated with carved animal figures and figural scenes; one interpretation links these to stories of Saint Nicholas. A scholar has noted similarities with fonts found in southern and central England, including at Winchester Cathedral, though this comparison should be treated as one expert opinion rather than settled fact.

A standing wooden Madonna, carved in oak and roughly dated to about 1500, was formerly kept at a museum in Borås. The altarpiece, a relief showing the Descent from the Cross, was acquired for the church in 1695 but is understood to be an earlier Central European work, possibly fifteenth-century; it was repainted in white and gold in 1814 before being returned to something closer to its original appearance in the mid-twentieth century.

The pulpit was made in 1717 by the woodcarver Bengt Wedelin of Borås, its canopy decorated with figures and topped by a figure of Christ with a victory banner; it was moved from the south to the north side of the church in 1863. The larger of the two bells is late medieval, bearing a worn inscription in Gothic lettering that has been tentatively read as referring to the year 1502, though the exact wording remains uncertain; the smaller bell was cast in 1701 by Gerhard Meyer of Stockholm.

Opening hours

Opening hours have not been confirmed for the current date. This does not mean the church is closed.

Check access with the parish before travelling. Services and seasonal changes can affect visits.

Facilities & accessibility

  • Toilet

Listed by the provider; availability has not been independently checked. An unlisted facility is not necessarily unavailable.

Herrljungabygdens församling

Ods kyrka

Ods kyrka is a stone church in Herrljunga kommun, believed to date from the early 1100s and unusual for retaining a medieval porch. Alterations followed during the 1600s and 1700s, giving today's building its layered history.

Stationsvägen 7, Östra Kyrkogatan

Explore this church: Ods kyrka

Church information: Svenska kyrkan, Platser · CC BY 4.0. Each church page includes its credits and visiting notes.

Other churches in the same diocese

Basic listing

Humla kyrka

Humla kyrka stands on high ground above the Ätra valley in Ulricehamn municipality, visible from all directions across the village. The present church was consecrated in 1891 on the site of a medieval predecessor, from…

Blidsberg Prästgården 102

View church details: Humla kyrka
Basic listing

Tidavads kyrka

Tidavads kyrka is a parish church in the village of Tidavad, in Mariestad Municipality, Västra Götaland County, belonging to Ullervad parish in the Diocese of Skara. Its origins go back to the Middle Ages, though…

Ullervadsvägen 2, Marci hus

View church details: Tidavads kyrka
Basic listing

Horla kyrka

Horla kyrka is a small Romanesque church in the parish of Hol, in the south-western part of Vårgårda in Västra Götaland. Considered one of the best-preserved churches in the diocese of Skara, it dates from…

Kungsgatan 43, Vårgårda

View church details: Horla kyrka

Sources & credits

Provider catalogue data: Svenska kyrkan, Platser, CC BY 4.0. Separately credited descriptions retain their stated source and licence terms. Catalogue and visiting data reformatted from the provider. The English guide combines and abridges separately credited sources below.

Provider record updated: 15 Jun 2026. This is not an independent verification date.

Source record: 5d1c1a69-4e2e-4de8-b76c-47e97090b13c

Guide sources

This English guide combines, abridges and translates the sources below with AI assistance, with editorial contributions by Churches in Sweden. It has not been independently verified. The adapted guide text is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Photographs and map data have their own terms.

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Church data retrieved 24 Sep 2026. Visiting details have not been independently verified.

Sources, licences & reuse

Independent guide

Churches in Sweden is an independent guide. It is not an official Svenska kyrkan website and does not imply sponsorship or endorsement.

Church information

Source: Svenska kyrkan — Platser, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. English adaptations by Churches in Sweden are identified on each profile. Our adaptations solely from Platser are offered under CC BY 4.0. Guides combining Wikipedia with other compatible sources are identified individually and offered under CC BY-SA 4.0; this covers that guide text, not the whole website. Separately credited third-party material retains its stated terms. Independently written descriptions are identified on their profiles. Imported material has not been independently verified. Original names and visiting details are retained; presentation is reformatted. Each profile identifies its source record and any additional supplied credits.

You may reuse the licensed church material under CC BY 4.0, including commercially, with the required attribution, licence link and indication of changes. No additional site restriction overrides those rights. The licence does not automatically cover separately credited images or map data.

Provider disclaimer

Svenska kyrkan supplies Platser data without guaranteeing that it is correct, current, complete across its organisation, or always available. The material is provided as-is and as-available, subject to the licence’s disclaimer of warranties and limitation of liability.

Svenska kyrkan kan ej garantera att den data som finns i Platser:
– är korrekt.
– är aktuell.
– är komplett för hela Svenska kyrkans organisation.
– alltid är tillgänglig.

Preserved provider agreement · Full licence

Automatic diocese associations use the organisation codes from Svenska kyrkan UnitAPI. An association does not establish ownership or denomination. External editorial sources are credited separately.

Map and photographs

Map data: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL and © OpenMapTiles. Tiles and style are served by World Class Maps. Map rendering uses MapLibre GL JS. The map’s own attribution remains visible.

Photographs are credited individually with their own licence or permission. The API data licence does not automatically cover photographs. No images are imported automatically.