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Mattsmyra kapell

Address
Västra Kyrkogatan 9, Johannesgården
Municipality
Ovanåkers Kommun
Denomination
Church of Sweden
Associated diocese
Diocese of Uppsala

Mattsmyra kapell is a small timber chapel in Alfta-Ovanåker parish, in Hälsingland, Gävleborg County. Set beside a country road roughly 18 kilometres north of Voxna, it is a modest but characterful example of late nineteenth-century Swedish rural church building.



The present chapel dates from 1891, replacing an earlier timber chapel built only three years before, in 1888, which burned down on Christmas night 1890. The design for both buildings came from the priest and school inspector Richard Norén, giving the chapel an unusually direct link between local clergy and its architecture.

The building follows a simple rectangular plan, oriented southwest to northeast, with the entrance at the southwest end and the chancel, backed by a lower sacristy, at the northeast. A steep pitched roof, covered in profiled sheet metal, carries a central ridge turret topped with a tall spire. Rose windows mark each gable end, while the remaining windows are pointed in the Gothic style typical of the period. A freestanding, white-painted bell tower stands northwest of the chapel; it is as old as the first 1888 chapel and still holds a bell that is rung by hand.

Inside, the altarpiece was carved by the sculptor Carl Johan Dyfverman and takes the form of a cross with a shroud and crown of thorns. A many-branched wooden chandelier hangs at the centre of the chapel, adding to the warm, timber-lined atmosphere of the interior.

An octagonal pulpit stands on a single pillar against the north wall, its sides decorated with painted crosses, and above it an octagonal sounding board bears a biblical inscription beneath a small wooden cross. The chancel retains further original fittings, including a lidded font, a hymn-number board and four high-backed chairs, all thought to date from the chapel's construction. An electric organ with two manuals was recorded in the building around 1990, though little else is known of its later history.

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.

Alfta-Ovanåkers församling

Mattsmyra kapell

Mattsmyra kapell is a small timber chapel in Alfta-Ovanåker parish, in Hälsingland, Gävleborg County. Set beside a country road roughly 18 kilometres north of Voxna, it is a modest but characterful example of late nineteenth-century Swedish rural church building.

Västra Kyrkogatan 9, Johannesgården

Explore this church: Mattsmyra kapell

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

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Kårböle Stavkyrka, also known as St Olof's Offerkyrka, is a small stave-built chapel near Kårböle in Gävleborg, dedicated in 1989. It stands close to the site once used by medieval pilgrims travelling the route to…

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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: 9 Jun 2022. This is not an independent verification date.

Source record: c9ace413-d087-4229-bedd-a522a51965f5

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.

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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

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