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Östra Karaby kyrka

Address
Östra Karaby kyrka 1
Municipality
Eslövs Kommun
Denomination
Church of Sweden
Associated diocese
Diocese of Lund

Östra Karaby kyrka is a small Romanesque church perched on a hilltop in Skåne, said to offer one of the province's finest views. Built towards the end of the eleventh century, it stands in Östra Karaby within Eslöv Municipality.



The church is thought to have been built in the late 1000s or possibly the early 1100s, in Romanesque style, and remains notably small. It has no tower. A western extension with a vault was added around the middle of the nineteenth century, and the porch on the north side is recorded as dating from 1728, replacing an earlier porch that had stood to the south.

The church stands on Karabybacke, a ridge of white sand roughly 91 metres above sea level, a type of hillock common in this part of Skåne. On a clear day it is said to be possible to see dozens of other churches from this vantage point, a claim often repeated locally and difficult to verify precisely but consistent with the position of the site.

Inside, the church holds a triumphal crucifix dated to the 1400s, which is badly damaged. An old collection box carries a painted note recording that the bell tower was built in 1713, the pews made in 1721 and the porch built in 1728. Northeast of the church stands a timber-framed bell tower, or klockstapel, from 1713, holding a single bell cast in 1763.

The building was restored in 1917, and again in the mid-1960s, when medieval decorative details were uncovered, including fine fifteenth-century ornamentation, and the pulpit's Rococo decoration from the 1700s was restored. The exterior is whitewashed rendered stone with stepped gables, replacing an earlier and very old timber church that had itself been built in a small Romanesque style.

The church has had at least two organs: one built in 1864 by Carl Elfström of Ljungby, later rebuilt in 1927, and the current mechanical organ, built in 1967 by the Frederiksborg Orgelbyggeri workshop in Hillerød, Denmark.

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.

Eslövs pastorat

Östra Karaby kyrka

Östra Karaby kyrka is a small Romanesque church perched on a hilltop in Skåne, said to offer one of the province's finest views. Built towards the end of the eleventh century, it stands in Östra Karaby within Eslöv Municipality.

Östra Karaby kyrka 1

Explore this church: Östra Karaby kyrka

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

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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: 25 Aug 2025. This is not an independent verification date.

Source record: 1d79bcc8-ab25-4da1-a7d2-c13386dfc0e8

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.