Lurö – öar i Vänerns mitt

On the small island of Luro in Lake Vanern, there are the ruins of a medieval stone church. Archaeological excavations have revealed that the church probably was built during the first part of the eleventh century AD. The study has therefore focused on why such a large church was built at such an early stage on this small island. The placement of the church deviates from the usual location of other early stone churches ; these earliest churches were normally built on large estates owned by people of the upper strata of society. Recent excavations of settlement remains near the church ruin have opened up for a new discussion about the person or persons who decided to build the church on Luro. This has also led to a discussion about the use of the church.