Södra Råda Old Church

Södra Råda gamla kyrka ( Old church of Södra Råda ) was a church in the Swedish province of Västra Götaland County and the historic provinces of Västergötland and Värmland.

The church built in 1310 was one of the oldest preserved medieval wooden churches in Sweden. 1323 the choir was decorated with paintings in high-Gothic style. 1494 the nave was provided by Master Amund with murals. Because of the medieval paintings that covered the entire interior of the church, was the church as a unique cultural monument in Sweden and it was planned to propose it as a World Heritage Site. The church was built from lying, edited with an ax planks. The exterior walls were covered with tarred wood shavings.

The church fell in November 2001, a victim to arson. The following year, the Swedish National Heritage Board, an interdisciplinary research project that aims to investigate through archaeological excavations, historical and cultural geography analysis and art historical studies and construction of the church and its surroundings in the social context of the Middle Ages. As part of the project, the church should also be reconstructed. The paintings, however, are well documented.

From the community Gullspång, the Region Västra Götaland and the Swedish National Heritage Board, the Foundation Södra Råda gamla kyrkplats was established. It is the owner of the site and to provide adequate resources for continuation of the project are available.