Skara

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Skara (pop. 10,700, location 58°23′N 13°26′E) is a town in Västra Götaland County, in western Sweden and the seat of Skara Municipality (ca 18,000 inh). Despite its size, it has a long educational and ecclesiastical history. One of Sweden's oldest high schools, Katedralskolan, is situated in Skara.

1 Geography
2 History
3 Notability
- 3.1 Old age
- 3.2 New
4 References
5 See also
6 External links

[edit] Geography

Skara is located by the E20 motorway, about 150 kilometers north of Gothenburg, in the middle of the historical Swedish mainland.

The name Skara comes from Skåra or Skarv, which means score. It is believed to refer to the terrain.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] History

Skara was, according to local legend, founded in AD 988, making it one of the oldest cities of Sweden. At this time it was one of only two cities in what was to become Västergötland, the other being Lödöse, and Skara was the location for the regional assembly, the Thing of all Geats.

With the Christianization of Sweden Skara in 1050 AD became the seat for the bishop and a religious centre for the ensuing centuries; there has been bishops of Skara in an unbroken succession up to this day.

Skara Cathedral in central Skara, 2005

Many important assemblies were held in Skara in the medieval times. For instance the important Swedish chancellor meeting in 1326 and a meeting of Swedish, Danish and Norwegian forced in 1458, decided upon the later Kalmar Union.

In the ensuing medieval centuries there were also monasteries and other churches completed in the town. The first monastery was for Dominican order, called the monastery of Saint Olof, it was opened in 1234; the other was of the Franciscan order, known as Saint Katherine (or Katarina in Swedish) can be attested the first time in 1259.

The foundations of the Skara Cathedral are believed to stem from around 1050. The current cathedral was inaugurated in 1150, but findings during the last 50 years show it must be at least a century older. Its current appearance, however, stems from renovations in the 1880s by Helgo Zettervall.

[edit] Notability

[edit] Old age

There are several notabilities and artifacts from the medieval times around Skara. A chalice from bishop Adalvard the Elder, dead in 1064, (so called Adalvardskalken) was found in his grave in the 18th century, and was for a while used in the Holy Communion.

Some 44 pages of a book containing a texts and hymns of Catholic rituals is currently in the Västergötland museum in Skara. It is the oldest book in Sweden, written between 1100-1150 by Skara monks.

There are also several other objects found during excavations of the monasteries and churches, most of them on public display in some museum.

[edit] New

In Skara is a branch of the Swedish agricultural College, (or Sveriges Lantbruksuniversitet).

There are several music and entertainment artists in Skara, giving it a notable spot among the metropolitans.

The Skara Sommarland is a popular amusement park with a reputation well known at least throughout the nation, and some suggest even further than that. Most notable is its water park with water chutes, artificial rafts, etc.

The official museum of Västergötland is in Skara.