GP 432 Stenkyrka kyrka VII

Context and Discovery
Lindqvist notes very briefly: “Piece of a kerbstone that was found in 1911 by [Fredrik Nordin] in the cemetery wall just south of the west gate.” The earliest church at this place was probably a wooden building that was replaced by a stone church in the first half of the twelfth century. The foundations of the first stone church were discovered beneath the floor of the current church, which was built during the thirteenth century. The nave was erected shortly after the dedication of the choir in 1255, the new tower between 1280 and 1310 (on the building’s architectural history, see Roosval 1911, pp. 84–86; 1914, pp. 1–52, esp. 21–24; Lagerlöf/Svahnström 1991, pp. 239–243).

In his book “Gotlands Bildsteine”, Sune Lindqvist (1941/42 II, pp. 115–118) lists nine picture stones from Stenkyrka church. By contrast, the list put together by Jan Peder Lamm in 2003 contains no fewer than 40 new discoveries (Lamm/Nylén 2003, nos. 238–276, 425, 426). The unusually large number of stones found not only in the church, but in the entire parish, is an indicator of the political and religious position that Stenkyrka probably already held even before the first church was built (see Roosval 1914, p. 5). Many of the new findings from the church were discovered during a large-scale restoration, which was carried out in 1954/55 according to plans by the architect Rolf Bergh.
SO

Measurements, Material and Condition
The small limestone fragment forms a triangle, one side of which preserves the original edge of the picture stone. The stone is up to 9 cm thick, approximately 46.5 cm in length, and 40 cm wide. The broad side of the stone was hewn flat but is heavily worn and includes cracks and abrasions. There are still traces of carving and a border panel on the broad side. The remaining narrow side is smoothly hewn and connected to the broad side by an approximately 1.5 cm wide chamfered edge. Although Lindqvist (1941/42 II, p. 117) described this narrow side as “clearly convex”, it is noticeably straight. The second edge is also straight, but it appears to have been cut secondarily and is thus not the original surface of the picture stone. The third edge is a diagonal fracture.
CJL/SO

Description of Ornament and Images
On the broad side of the stone, there is what Lindqvist (1941/42 II, p. 117) described as a “double framing border” that is 20 cm wide and runs parallel to the remaining original edge of the stone. The border panel is set approximately 1.5 cm in from the chamfered edge and is defined on its outer side by three parallel chiseled grooves that are approximately 0.5 cm wide and on its inner side by a thin chiseled groove that is heavily worn. The inner border panel is composed of two bands that are approximately 9 cm and 7 cm wide respectively and separated by at least one chiseled groove. Within these bands there is likely a decorative design, but the combination of wear and abrasions makes it difficult to discern. There also appears to be a curved line, possibly the outer edge of a circle, next to the fractured edge of the stone. The outer band may include a zigzag pattern that is depicted in the drawing of the stone provided by Lindqvist (1941/42 II, fig. 506), and which shows similarities to the patterns on GP 140–141 Hall Kyrka 1–2. There is also a photo of the secondarily painted stone taken in 1933 that is kept in ATA (run- och bildstenssamling 1751:20a).
CJL/SO
GP 140 Hall kyrka 1
GP 141 Hall kyrka 2

Interpretation of the Imagery
No interpretation

Type and Dating
Lindqvist (1941/42 I, pp. 28, 31–33, 110) categorized Stenkyrka kyrka VII as a kerbstone (Randstein) that is included within his first grouping of picture stones, ʻAbschnittʼ A, which date to circa AD 400–600 (see also Oehrl 2019a, pp. 8–10). According to Lindqvist (1933, pp. 105, 107; 1941/1942 I, pp. 21, 31–33), the kerbstones and erected Type A picture stones were possibly connected and could have created a singular monument with the erected picture stones placed within the grave mound encircled by an edge chain of carved kerbstones. However, no evidence has been found to confirm that any of the erected Type A picture stones were placed within a grave mound (Larkin 2023a, p. 50).

Stenkyrka kyrka VII is included within Lindqvist’s (1941/42 I, pp. 28, 33) group 3 kerbstones which are characterized as having simpler borders filled with zigzag lines. The kerbstones GP 482 Tingstäde kyrka VIII and GP 483 Tingstäde kyrka X are also included within this category. However, the kerbstones that are associated with the picture stones are characterized as having a convex upper long edge. Due to the distinctly straight outer edge of the stone, it is unlikely that Stenkyrka kyrka VII is a kerbstone. Double frame border designs are found on the upper edge of some of the tall stones from ‘Abschnitt’ A, but these upper edges are also convex. The fragment could be a section of the long side of a Type A picture stone. While the border decoration most probably speaks for ʻAbschnittʼ A (see above), the exact type and function of the monument remains uncertain due to its fragmentary condition.
CJL/SO
GP 482 Tingstäde kyrka VIII
GP 483 Tingstäde kyrka X

References
Lindqvist 1941/42 II, p. 117, fig. 506; Lamm/Nylén 2003, p. 193.

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