Bollerups kyrka stands beside the medieval Bollerup castle in Skåne, its oldest parts dating from the 12th century. With its distinctive round tower and remarkable 15th-century wall paintings, it is one of a small group of surviving round-towered churches in the region.
The church's nave, chancel and apse were built in the 1100s, with the round west tower added slightly later, all constructed from hewn local limestone. It is one of only four Skåne churches known to retain a round tower of this type, alongside those at Blentarp, Hammarlunda and Hammarlöv. Tradition holds that the Due family, an old Danish noble line who owned the Bollerup estate from around 1130, were responsible for the original building, though this is not firmly documented.
Brick vaults were inserted in the first half of the 15th century, and in 1476 the church was richly decorated with wall paintings, funded by the noblewoman Barbara Brahe and her son Oluf Stigsen Krogenos. The paintings depict scenes including John the Baptist with angels, the dead rising from their graves, tormented sinners in hell, and the saved being welcomed at the gates of heaven. According to tradition, Barbara Brahe had made a pilgrimage in 1475 with the Danish queen and secured a papal indulgence connected to services held in her churches, which is said to have prompted the commissioning of these paintings. The murals were later whitewashed in 1536 and were not rediscovered and conserved until the 1950s and 1960s.
Among the church's furnishings, the font is of a type made around 1200 and is thought to be among the oldest items in the building. The elaborately carved altarpiece, featuring so-called cartilage ornamentation, dates from 1650, and the richly carved and painted pulpit is attributed to the first half of the 1600s, in a Renaissance style.
A burial chapel was added in 1649 with support from the Rantzau family, though it was demolished in 1869. Further restoration work took place in the mid-18th century, including a new canopy for the pulpit and new silverware. Between 1869 and 1874 the church was substantially enlarged with the addition of the present chancel, transepts and an apse-shaped sacristy.
Historically, worshippers entered through separate doors on the south and north sides of the nave, traditionally used by men and women respectively, and stone benches along the walls were reserved for the elderly, with everyone else expected to stand through services. The current organ, a mechanical instrument, was built in 1966, replacing an earlier organ of unknown origin.
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Bollerups kyrka stands beside the medieval Bollerup castle in Skåne, its oldest parts dating from the 12th century. With its distinctive round tower and remarkable 15th-century wall paintings, it is one of a small group of surviving round-towered churches in the region.
Bollerup 101, 273 91, Tomelilla
Explore this church: Bollerups kyrkaChurch information: Svenska kyrkan, Platser · CC BY 4.0. Each church page includes its credits and visiting notes.
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View church details: Kvistofta kyrkaLocation and available visiting information. A fuller English guide is still to be added.
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View church details: Husie kapellLocation and available visiting information. A fuller English guide is still to be added.
Råbelöfsallén 100-21, 291 94, Kristianstad
View church details: Råbelöfs KyrkaSources, credits and English adaptations are identified on each church page. Provider data: Svenska kyrkan, Platser · CC BY 4.0.
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: 24 Jun 2026. This is not an independent verification date.
Source record: d07a070e-8273-47db-8a8f-fde9a198d8c8
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.