Raus kyrka

The church was built around the mid-1100s in sandstone, originally comprising a nave, a narrower chancel with an apse, and a slender west tower. Only the three eastern bays of that first nave survive today; the roof structure is of oak, its timbers marked with runic or rune-like signs.

In the 1400s the tower was demolished and the nave extended westward, with brick cross-vaults added, giving the ceiling its present pointed profile. The vaults and north wall were decorated with murals, some of which were uncovered again in 1938; the best preserved shows the Crucifixion. A porch was also built at this time in front of the south entrance.

The church changed considerably in the 1840s, when the medieval chancel, apse and porch were removed and a transept was added to the nave, following a design by architect Johan Fredrik Åbom based on an earlier proposal by master mason Sven P. Bergh. A sacristy was built to the east. Further alterations followed in 1886, 1905 and 1938, the last under architect Arnold Salomon-Sörensen, when a new sacristy allowed the former one to be absorbed into the church interior as a chancel.

The freestanding bell tower beside the church, at its south-east corner, dates from 1782 and replaced an earlier, decayed 17th-century structure.

Among the furnishings, the richly carved oak altarpiece is attributed to Sören Kjaer, probably from 1624, and carries inscriptions in Latin. A medieval triumphal crucifix and an oak Madonna sculpture from the later 1400s are among the oldest items in the church. The font, of limestone, was designed by Salomon-Sörensen and given to the church in 1938, while its dish dates from the 1600s. A crystal chandelier, given as a votive offering, also hangs in the church. Stained glass windows from 1953 by Hugo Gehlin depict scenes from the life of Christ.

The churchyard is the burial place of Ruben Rausing, the Swedish industrialist who founded Tetra Pak, whose grave is a point of interest for visitors.