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Stora kyrkan

Address
Rådhusgatan 45, 831 36, Östersund
Municipality
Östersunds Kommun
Denomination
Church of Sweden
Associated diocese
Diocese of Härnösand

Stora kyrkan, also known as Östersund's new church, stands on Rådhusgatan in the Söder district of Östersund. Consecrated in 1940, it is best known for its vast altar fresco, said to be the city's largest single work of art at 170 square metres.



The church was built to designs by architect Lars Israel Wahlman and consecrated on 14 July 1940 by Bishop Torsten Bohlin. Constructed of brick on a granite plinth, it takes the form of a basilica, with a tall central nave flanked by two lower side aisles, a three-sided chancel to the east, and a substantial tower with an entrance at the western end.

The altarpiece, painted directly onto the chancel wall in fresco technique between 1939 and 1940, is the work of Professor Hilding Linnqvist, regarded as one of Sweden's leading naivist painters. Its imagery draws on the parables of Jesus from the Gospels, and Linnqvist freely combined figures and settings from different periods and places within a single scene. One notable detail is a maiden depicted in traditional Jämtland folk costume, a local touch amid the biblical narrative.

Other furnishings include a font designed by Sune Overud, and a rya rug woven in 1936 by female patients at the Frösö clinics, which hangs on the south wall. A memorial candle-holder, capable of holding 72 candles, was made by Christer Wall at the Hults smithy in Östersund.

The church has two organs: a gallery organ built by Grönlunds Orgelbyggeri and inaugurated in 1995, and a smaller chancel organ built in 1976–77 by Olof Hammarberg of Gothenburg.

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.

Facilities & accessibility

  • Toilet
  • Café
  • Hearing loop

Listed by the provider; availability has not been independently checked. An unlisted facility is not necessarily unavailable.

Östersunds församling

Stora kyrkan

Stora kyrkan, also known as Östersund's new church, stands on Rådhusgatan in the Söder district of Östersund. Consecrated in 1940, it is best known for its vast altar fresco, said to be the city's largest single work of art at 170 square metres.

Rådhusgatan 45, 831 36, Östersund

Explore this church: Stora kyrkan

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

Ängersjö kyrka

Ängersjö kyrka is a wooden parish church in the small settlement of Ängersjö, in the Härjedalen area of Jämtlands län. Though administratively in Hälsingland, it belongs to Härnösands stift and is best known locally as…

Ängersjö

View church details: Ängersjö 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: 18 Aug 2025. This is not an independent verification date.

Source record: 877e2faf-40a0-4dfd-867b-ea928cd17111

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.