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Roma kyrka

Address
622 54, Romakloster
Municipality
Gotland
Denomination
Church of Sweden
Associated diocese
Diocese of Visby

Roma kyrka is a medieval limestone church in the village of Roma kyrkby on Gotland, part of Roma parish in the Diocese of Visby. Its three-aisled hall-church interior and richly worked portals make it one of the island's more architecturally telling parish churches.



The church's oldest surviving element is the sacristy on the north side, originally built onto an apsed chancel dating from the later twelfth century; stones from that earlier apse are said to survive within the present masonry. In a later building phase, probably during the thirteenth century, the current chancel and three-bay nave were added, with the two westernmost bays apparently completed slightly after the rest, as suggested by differences in vaulting and window design. Seen from outside, the church has the profile of a basilica with a low clerestory, and a roof turret with an octagonal spire crowns the west gable. A blocked tower arch in the west wall hints at a west tower that was planned but never built.

Inside, the church follows a hall-church plan, with the nave's cross-vaults rising slightly higher than those of the side aisles; nine cross-vaults are carried on four substantial piers. The chancel is lit by a group of three windows in the east wall and a further window to the south, and in the north chancel wall a carved wooden-framed niche houses a thirteenth-century sacrament cupboard. Much of the present neo-Gothic character of the interior, including the current altarpiece with its painted biblical scenes, dates from a restoration in 1902; an older altarpiece of 1656, attributed to Johan Bartsch, now hangs in the nave rather than above the altar.

Among the church's furnishings, the red limestone font, of a mussel-bowl type, dates from around the middle of the thirteenth century, making it one of the older fittings to survive intact. The pulpit, in a late Baroque style, was given to the church in 1737 by the provincial governor Grönhagen. A triumphal crucifix said to date from the eighteenth century, and epitaphs from the seventeenth century, add further layers to the church's long furnishing history, alongside more recent additions such as an altar crucifix from 1989 and a chancel carpet from 2001.

The organ was built in 1873 by Åkerman & Lund and later restored in 1990; it remains a mechanical instrument. In the churchyard stands a separate bell tower holding bells brought to Roma in 1929 by Swedish-speaking settlers who had returned from the village of Gammalsvenskby in Ukraine, a striking reminder of Gotland's historical links with that community.

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.

Roma församling

Roma kyrka

Roma kyrka is a medieval limestone church in the village of Roma kyrkby on Gotland, part of Roma parish in the Diocese of Visby. Its three-aisled hall-church interior and richly worked portals make it one of the island's more architecturally telling parish churches.

622 54, Romakloster

Explore this church: Roma 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

Ardre kyrka

Ardre kyrka, in Garde parish on Gotland, is one of the island's smallest churches, with a medieval tower and nave dating back to around 1200–1250. Part of Visby stift, it stands on the site of…

Garde Prästgård 410

View church details: Ardre kyrka
Basic listing

Hall kyrka

Hall kyrka, on Gotland, is a medieval parish church noted for its wall paintings from the 1200s, 1300s and 1600s. Built around 1220, it stands within a walled churchyard and retains a striking collection of…

Hall kyrka, 624 56, Lärbro

View church details: Hall 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: 22 Jan 2025. This is not an independent verification date.

Source record: d1962a81-a19c-4a86-80c8-52645b80700c

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.