Skip to main content

Torsångs kyrka

Address
Torsång 139, Borlänge
Municipality
Borlänge Kommun
Denomination
Church of Sweden
Associated diocese
Diocese of Västerås

Torsångs kyrka, standing beside the river Runn in Torsång, Dalarna, is thought to be the oldest church in the province. Built of grey stone in the early fourteenth century, it retains a striking medieval interior and a distinctive detached bell tower.



The church is constructed of rough grey stone with decorative brick friezes beneath the roofline and star-shaped vaulted ceilings, features unusual for a rural Dalarna church of this early date. Only the porch is a later addition. Above the Crusebjörn family burial chapel is a so-called "gubbvalv", a vault decorated with carved male figures, an unusual and memorable detail for visitors to look out for. Scholars have noted a strong resemblance between Torsångs kyrka and the slightly older Trönö gamla kyrka in Hälsingland, suggesting both may have been built by the same itinerant Finnish building team working in the region at the time, though this remains a theory rather than a settled fact.

The font, carved from Gotland sandstone, dates from around the mid-thirteenth century and is the oldest object in the church, predating the current stone building itself. The pulpit was added in 1624, and the altarpiece surrounding the chancel window dates from 1795. During restoration work in 1912, overseen by the noted conservator Sigurd Curman, a new stained-glass window was installed in the chancel, designed by Filip Månsson around a central cross motif surrounded by images of the church, the bell tower, the river and the forest.

The separate, shingle-clad and tar-blackened bell tower is one of the church's most atmospheric features. Its precise age is uncertain: historical sources mention a tower already standing in the sixteenth century, but the structure seen today is generally believed to date from the mid-seventeenth century. Investigations of its timber have found reused medieval material, including wall timber dated to the thirteenth century, possibly from an earlier wooden church or chapel on the site — intriguing evidence that today's stone church may have had a wooden predecessor.

The churchyard is enclosed by a stone wall that, besides marking the boundary, has traditionally helped protect the site from flooding when water levels in the nearby lake Runn rise; flood marks are carved into the wall itself. The church and its bell tower also appear briefly in the opening of Ingmar Bergman's film Nattvardsgästerna (Winter Light), a detail of interest to film enthusiasts visiting the area.

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
  • Hearing loop

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

Stora Tuna och Torsångs pastorat

Torsångs kyrka

Torsångs kyrka, standing beside the river Runn in Torsång, Dalarna, is thought to be the oldest church in the province. Built of grey stone in the early fourteenth century, it retains a striking medieval interior and a distinctive detached bell tower.

Torsång 139, Borlänge

Explore this church: Torsångs kyrka

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

Våmhus kyrka

Våmhus kyrka is a parish church in the village of Våmhus, on the north-western shore of Lake Orsasjön in Dalarna. It belongs to Mora parish within the Diocese of Västerås, and stands as the successor…

Kyrkvägen 10, 79296, Våmhus

View church details: Våmhus kyrka
Basic listing

Kumla kyrka

Kumla kyrka is a parish church in Kumla kyrkby, Västmanland, part of Kumla, Tärna och Kila pastorat within the Diocese of Västerås. Its grey-stone origins date back to around 1300, making it one of the…

Kumlavägen 10, Kumla kyrkby, 733 93, SALA

View church details: Kumla 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: 13 May 2025. This is not an independent verification date.

Source record: 688b68af-f193-46e1-a584-638dbf084022

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.

Suggest a correction

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.