Strö

Strö, south-east of lake Vänern, is a sandstone church with square chancel.

A capping piece on the south wall of the chancel has been dated to the period 1229 - 1236. The outermost annual ring of one single bore-core from the south capping piece of the nave is dated to 1140. That annual ring consists of heart-wood, and the felling year is unknown. It was certainly after 1149 and may well have been contemporary with that of the chancel. It is hard to estimate the thickness of the layer of the wood which has been cut off from the tree-trunk in the part from which the sample was taken, but at least 5 cm of wood has been removed. This makes it probable that the two wall-plates are contemporary.

The church has several architectural details of interest. In the south wall of the nave there is an aperture of about 70x25 cm about half a meter under the top. It was shaped when the church was built. On the south wall of the chancel there are two carved stones, like a frieze. One shows in simple carving the Lord's Supper and the other shows a well worked relief of S:t Michael with a balance and a human figure with snakes at its chest. The gable of the chancel has a circular aperture with a diameter of about 10 cm. Its moulding consists of four petal-shaped grooves. Below that aperture is a regular cross in a circle cut in stone. The two relief cut stones and the stone with a regular cross have apparently been made for different positions than at present, and it is therefore advisable to be cautious about conclusions when using the dating of the wall-plates.