Ovansjö kyrka

The parish of Ovansjö is first recorded in an inventory of church property drawn up by the canon Benno of Uppsala, dated to the late 13th century (sources give 1293 or 1296). The first stone church, built around the mid-1200s, was a plain rectangular building with a straight east end, small round-arched windows and a timber ceiling, without a tower—typical of many churches in the Archdiocese of Uppsala at the time. Its south doorway, carved from limestone, survives and was later repositioned when the church was rebuilt.

Over the following centuries the church gained a sacristy, a porch, and brick vaulting, along with various structural repairs. By the mid-1700s the medieval building had become too small for the congregation, and a major rebuilding was carried out between 1759 and 1762–63 under the direction of Gävle town builder Daniel Lundkvist. The north and west walls were demolished and rebuilt further out, the nave was given a bold brick tunnel vault, and a new west tower and east sacristy were added. The medieval south portal was relocated to its present position in the rebuilt wall.

Further restoration took place in 1895–97 under architect E. A. Hedin, when the walls were painted brown and the vault decorated with stencilled patterns; workers reportedly discovered several coffins containing embalmed remains beneath the floor during this work. A later restoration in 1963–64, led by architect J. Thomé, reversed the 19th-century decorative scheme, replacing it with plain light plaster, and strengthened the vault. Fragments of medieval wall paintings uncovered during this work were removed rather than preserved.

Inside, the church holds an unusually rich group of medieval wooden sculptures, including a seated Madonna and Child dated to around the mid-1200s—among the oldest objects in the building—along with a later medieval Madonna, a figure of Saint Birgitta, and a triumphal crucifix. The font, carved from Gotland limestone, is contemporary with the first stone church. The carved baroque altarpiece dates from around 1690, and the pulpit, made in 1662 by Evert (Ewerdt) Friis, is decorated with figures of Christ and the apostles, with angels and instruments of the Passion above.

The church has had a succession of organs. An early 18th-century instrument by Johan Niclas Cahman was sold to Årsunda church in 1789; a persistent but unverified tradition connects an earlier organ to a gift from Queen Kristina. The present organ facade, designed by Hedin, dates from the 1896–97 rebuilding and was enlarged in 1964 to 31 stops across three manuals.