At the heart of the ancient university city of Lund in the southern Swedish province of Skane (Scania), just across the Oeresund strait from Copenhagen, two 55-meter grey sandstone towers affectionately known in local Scanian dialect as Lunna paagar (the Lads of Lund) command the skyline of the fertile agricultural plain. Below these twin spires rises a monumental twelfth-century sandstone basilica whose three-tiered eastern apse and subterranean crypt rank among the supreme achievements of European medieval architecture: Lund Cathedral (known in Swedish as Lunds domkyrka), the oldest and most visited Romanesque cathedral in the Nordic countries, welcoming more than 700,000 worshippers and visitors every year.
In the history of Northern European Christianity and the Evangelical Lutheran tradition of the Church of Sweden (Svenska kyrkan), Lund Cathedral occupies a status unmatched by any other sanctuary in Scandinavia. Elevated in 1104 by Pope Paschal II (at a time when Scania was the heartland of the Kingdom of Denmark) to serve as the Metropolitan Archiepiscopal See of All the North (Metropolis totius Septentrionis), Lund governed an ecclesiastical province stretching from the German border and the Baltic Sea all the way to Norway, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and the Norse settlements of Greenland. Whereas Vadstena Abbey on Lake Vaettern embodies the fourteenth-century mystical vision of Saint Birgitta and St. Eric's Cathedral in Stockholm serves Sweden's modern Catholic diocese, Lund Cathedral stands as the twelfth-century cradle of Nordic stone architecture and higher learning, and as the world stage where Pope Francis and the leaders of the Lutheran World Federation gathered on October 31, 2016 to turn five hundred years of Reformation conflict into communion.
ISaint Lawrence the Martyr, the Legend of Giant Finn in the 1123 Crypt, and the Spirit of Ecumenical Reconciliation
When the great sandstone cathedral was built in the early twelfth century and consecrated on September 1, 1145, it was dedicated to the Virgin Mary and above all to Saint Lawrence of Rome (Sanctus Laurentius, c. 225 to August 10, 258, known across Scandinavia as Sankt Lars). In early Christian history, Saint Lawrence was the chief among the seven deacons of Rome under Pope Sixtus II, entrusted with administering the treasury of the Church to care for the poor, widows, and orphans. When the Roman Prefect demanded that Lawrence hand over the riches of the Church within three days, the deacon distributed all the Church's funds to the needy, assembled a crowd of the blind, lame, and destitute before the authorities, and declared: Behold, these are the true treasures of the Church. Martyred upon an iron gridiron on August 10, 258, Saint Lawrence became the titular patron of Lund, and his emblem, the gridiron (halster), appears on medieval seals, reliefs, and liturgical furnishings throughout the cathedral.
Since the introduction of the Lutheran Reformation in Denmark and Scania in 1536 (and the transfer of Scania to the Kingdom of Sweden in 1658), Lund Cathedral has served as the seat of the Lutheran Bishop of Lund in the Church of Sweden (Svenska kyrkan). Centered upon the proclamation of Jesus Christ through Word and Sacrament, the cathedral simultaneously treasures its medieval artistic and spiritual heritage as a living bridge across Christian centuries.
The most famous Nordic folktale attached to Lund Cathedral revolves around two sculpted stone columns standing down in the twelfth-century Crypt (Kryptan): the Legend of Giant Finn (Legenden om Jaetten Finn). According to popular lore, when Saint Lawrence (Sankt Lars) began building the cathedral on the hill of Lund, a subterranean giant offered to construct the entire church in exchange for a fateful wager: if Saint Lars could not guess the giant's secret name before the final stone was set in place, the saint would forfeit his own eyes (or the sun and the moon from the sky).
As the vast sandstone church neared completion with only a single stone remaining to be laid in the crypt, Saint Lars walked anxiously across the hills outside the town. Suddenly, from beneath a grassy mound, he heard a giantess singing a lullaby to quiet her crying child: Hush now, my child; tomorrow your father Finn will come home bringing you the sun and moon, or Saint Lars's eyes to play with. Hurrying back to the church just as the giant was lifting the final block, the saint cried out: Finn, set that last stone in place! Realizing he had been outwitted, Giant Finn rushed down into the crypt in a fury and wrapped his arms around a supporting stone pillar to pull the entire cathedral down upon their heads, while his wife and child seized a neighboring column. At that instant, Saint Lars made the sign of the cross, and Giant Finn, his wife, and child were turned into stone forever, where they still stand embracing the crypt columns nine hundred years later.
From the perspective of medieval art history and biblical iconography, scholars have identified the theological meaning intended by the cathedral's twelfth-century Italian master architect Donatus and his Lombard stonemasons when they carved the muscular, long-haired man embracing the northern crypt pillar around 1123. Rather than a pagan Scandinavian giant, the relief represents the Old Testament hero Samson (Book of Judges 16).
In Romanesque Christian typology, whereas the biblical Samson used his strength to pull down the two pillars of the pagan temple of the Philistines in Gaza, inside the crypt of a Christian cathedral the figure is inverted into a symbol of spiritual fortitude: Samson (or the New Samson, a prefiguration of Christ) clasps the stone pillar firmly to uphold and support the house of God from beneath. Over subsequent centuries, local Scanian storytellers wove this striking Romanesque carving into the native Scandinavian folklore of master-builder giants (Jaettar), giving birth to the beloved legend of Giant Finn.
A frequent historical misconception among international visitors to Lund is the assumption that Lund Cathedral was founded by the medieval Kings of Sweden. In historical reality, from the Viking Age until the Treaty of Roskilde in 1658, the province of Skane (Scania) was the political and ecclesiastical heartland of the Kingdom of Denmark.
It was the Danish King Saint Canute IV (Knud den Hellige, reigned 1080 to 1086) who issued the famous Latin charter of May 21, 1085 endowing the cathedral chapter and cathedral school at Lund (the oldest surviving royal charter in Scandinavia); and it was his brother, the Danish King Eric I Evergood (Erik Ejegod), who traveled in person to Rome and Bari in 1098 to petition Pope Urban II for an independent Nordic archbishopric, resulting in the elevation of Lund in 1104 as the metropolitan see for all Scandinavia. Only after Sweden annexed Scania in 1658 did King Charles X Gustav and the regency of Charles XI found Lund University immediately adjacent to the cathedral in 1666 to integrate the southern provinces into the Swedish realm.
IINine Centuries from King Canute's 1085 Charter and the 1145 Consecration to the 2016 Joint Ecumenical Declaration
Spanning more than nine hundred years of uninterrupted worship, the history of Lund Cathedral bridges Danish and Swedish royal patronage, Lombard and Rhenish Romanesque architecture, and twenty-first-century Christian unity.
- May 21, 1085King Canute IV of Denmark issues the royal charter endowing Lund Cathedral and its schoolKing Canute IV (Saint Canute) signs the historic donation charter of May 21, 1085 granting extensive estates to the Church of Saint Lawrence at Lund and founding the Cathedral School (Katedralskolan).
- 1104Pope Paschal II elevates Lund to the Metropolitan Archbishopric of All ScandinaviaBishop Asser of Lund becomes the first Archbishop of the Nordic lands, exercising metropolitan authority over Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland, the Faroes, and Greenland.
- June 30, 1123 and September 1, 1145Master architect Donatus completes the Crypt (1123) and Archbishop Eskil consecrates the Cathedral (1145)Built of local Hoeoer sandstone by architect Donatus from Lombardy and sculptor Regnerus, the crypt high altar is consecrated on June 30, 1123 and the completed Romanesque cathedral is consecrated by Archbishop Eskil on September 1, 1145.
- 1234 and c. 1424Post-fire brick vaulting (1234), carved oak choir stalls (1370s), and the Astronomical Clock (c. 1424)Following a major fire in 1234, the nave is covered with six-part Gothic brick vaults; the 78 carved oak choir stalls are installed in the 1370s, the winged high altarpiece in 1398, and the astronomical clock Horologium mirabile Lundense around 1424.
- 1510 to 1527 and 1536Late medieval restorations by Adam van Dueren and the Lutheran Reformation (1536)German master builder and sculptor Adam van Dueren reinforces the building and carves the monumental tomb of Archbishop Birger Gunnersen in the crypt (1512 to 1513); in 1536 the Reformation transforms Lund into a Lutheran diocese.
- 1658 and 1666Scania becomes part of Sweden (1658) and Lund University is founded beside the Cathedral (1666)Following the Treaty of Roskilde (1658), Lund passes from Denmark to Sweden; in 1666 Lund University (Academia Carolina) is inaugurated inside the cathedral.
- 1833 to 1880 and 1923 to 1927Restorations by Brunius and Helgo Zettervall, restoration of the Clock (1923), and Skovgaard's Mosaic (1927)Carl Georg Brunius restores the crypt and opens the choir stair; Helgo Zettervall rebuilds the twin western towers (1860 to 1880); the Astronomical Clock is restored in 1923 and Joakim Skovgaard completes the gilded glass apse mosaic in 1927.
- October 31, 2016Pope Francis and the Lutheran World Federation sign the Joint Declaration at Lund CathedralOpening the 500th anniversary commemoration of the Reformation (1517 to 2017), Pope Francis, LWF President Bishop Munib Younan, and Archbishop Antje Jackelen co-preside over a historic ecumenical prayer service in Lund Cathedral.
October 31, 2016: From Conflict to Communion at Lund Cathedral. On Reformation Day, October 31, 2016, the eyes of the global Christian world turned to the sandstone nave of Lund Cathedral. To inaugurate the 500th anniversary year of Martin Luther's 1517 Reformation, Pope Francis traveled to Sweden to join the President of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), Bishop Dr. Munib Younan, LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr. Martin Junge, and the Lutheran Archbishop of Uppsala and Primate of the Church of Sweden, Dr. Antje Jackelen (who had previously served as Bishop of Lund from 2007 to 2014), alongside Stockholm's Catholic Bishop Anders Arborelius (whose see is at St. Eric's Cathedral in Stockholm).
For the first time in five centuries, the Bishop of Rome and the leaders of the worldwide Lutheran communion stood side by side at the altar of a Nordic Lutheran cathedral to ask forgiveness for historical divisions and violence, give thanks for the spiritual gifts of the Reformation, and sign the Joint Statement of Lund committing Catholics and Lutherans to common witness and joint humanitarian service to refugees and the poor through Caritas Internationalis and Lutheran World Service.
IIIThe 1123 Columned Crypt of Giant Finn, the 1424 Astronomical Clock, the Lombard Apse Gallery, and Sweden's Largest Pipe Organ
Constructed of warm grey-gold Hoeoer sandstone quarried in central Scania, Lund Cathedral is a monumental three-aisled Romanesque basilica with a transept, a raised eastern choir over a vast hall crypt, a semicircular three-tiered apse, and twin 55-meter western towers. Measuring roughly 85 meters in length, its twelfth-century masonry unites the sculptural artistry of Lombardy in Northern Italy (brought to Lund by master architect Donatus from Pavia or Como) with the imperial Romanesque proportions of the German Rhineland cathedrals of Speyer and Mainz.
Beneath the raised eastern transept and choir lies the vast subterranean Hall Crypt consecrated on June 30, 1123, which has survived for more than nine hundred years in its original twelfth-century masonry state. Forty-two groin-vaulted bays rest upon 24 stout sandstone columns, each carved with a unique geometric pattern of spirals, chevrons, and fluting. Embracing the northern pillar is the famous sculpted figure of Giant Finn (biblical Samson), while a southern pillar bears the figures of Finn's wife and child; the crypt also houses the ancient holy well decorated with satirical stone reliefs and Low German inscriptions by Adam van Dueren (1510s) and the carved stone sarcophagus of the last Catholic Archbishop, Birger Gunnersen (1512).
Standing nearly 7 meters tall in the northern nave aisle is the cathedral's world-renowned medieval astronomical clock, Horologium mirabile Lundense (The Wondrous Clock of Lund), originally built around 1424 and meticulously restored in 1923 by Danish clockmaker Julius Bertram-Larsen and cathedral architect Theodor Waahlin. The upper dial is an Astrolabium showing the daily movements of the sun and moon, the phases of the moon, and the twelve signs of the zodiac over the horizon of Lund; the lower Calendar Board calculates movable feasts and every date from 1923 through the year 2123, watched over by a central statue of Saint Lawrence and four medieval astronomers. Twice daily (at 12:00 noon and 3:00 p.m., or 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. on Sundays), two wooden knights on top clash their swords to strike the hour, a mechanical organ plays the medieval hymn In dulci jubilo accompanied by trumpeting angels, and the doors beside the Virgin Mary open as the Three Kings (Magi) and their attendants process out and bow before the Christ Child.
Facing the park of Lundagaard at the eastern end of the cathedral rises Donatus's twelfth-century semicircular Apse, universally acclaimed as the finest Romanesque exterior elevation in Northern Europe. Divided into three horizontal registers, the lower two levels feature pilaster strips and blind round-arched arcades with carved stone consoles, while the uppermost register beneath the eaves opens into a delicate recessed dwarf gallery (dvaerggalleri) of miniature stone colonnettes directly inspired by the Romanesque churches of Lombardy and the Rhine.
Ascending the broad nineteenth-century stone staircase from the nave into the High Choir, visitors stand beneath the monumental six-meter-high glass mosaic covering the half-dome of the apse, created between 1921 and 1927 by Danish artist Joakim Skovgaard using tons of colorful Venetian glass tesserae and gold leaf to depict the Risen Christ welcoming humanity at the Resurrection. Below the mosaic stands the gilded oak Winged Altarpiece of 1398 donated by Lady Ide Pedersdatter Falk housing 40 carved figures of saints, flanked by the 78 Gothic oak choir stalls carved in the 1370s with scenes from Old Testament salvation history and the labors of the twelve months.
Anchoring the western facade are the twin sandstone bell towers rising 55 meters high, reconstructed in pure Rhenish Romanesque style between 1860 and 1880 by architect Helgo Zettervall and housing five church bells (the oldest cast in 1513). Set into the main western entrance are the monumental bronze relief doors sculpted by Carl Johan Dyfverman (1880s) depicting episodes from the life of Jesus and Christian charity, surmounted by a twelfth-century Romanesque stone tympanum of Christ in Majesty.
Lund Cathedral is a premier center of Nordic sacred music equipped with five organs, crowned on the western gallery by the monumental main pipe organ built between 1932 and 1934 by the renowned Danish firm Marcussen & Soen (restored in 1992). Comprising 102 stops distributed across four manuals and pedal with a total of 7,074 individual pipes, it is the largest church pipe organ in the Kingdom of Sweden.
| Architectural or Artistic Treasure | Date and Architect or Artist | Technical Features and Heritage Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Romanesque Hall Crypt and Giant Finn Pillar | Consecrated June 30, 1123 (architect Donatus & Regnerus) | Intact 900-year-old sandstone crypt with 24 uniquely carved pillars, the Giant Finn (Samson) reliefs, and 1512 tomb by Adam van Dueren |
| Three-Tiered Eastern Apse and Nave | Consecrated September 1, 1145; brick vaults added after 1234 | 85 m overall length in Hoeoer sandstone; eastern apse crowned by an open Lombard-Rhenish dwarf gallery |
| Horologium mirabile Lundense (Astronomical Clock) | c. 1424; restored 1923 (Julius Bertram-Larsen & Theodor Waahlin) | 7 m tall medieval astrolabe and perpetual calendar (to 2123) with automated Three Kings procession twice daily |
| Gothic Choir Stalls and Winged Altarpiece | Choir stalls c. 1370s; High Altarpiece 1398 | 78 carved oak stalls depicting biblical typologies and seasonal labors; 1398 gilded altarpiece with 40 carved statues |
| Apse Mosaic and Marcussen Pipe Organ | 1927 mosaic (Joakim Skovgaard); 1932 to 1934 organ (Marcussen & Soen) | Venetian gold-glass Resurrection mosaic in the apse dome; Sweden's largest pipe organ with 102 stops and 7,074 pipes |
IVThe Lie of the Land and the Facing
It should be stated clearly that the medieval Danish kings, archbishops, and the Lombard architect Donatus did not employ East Asian geomancy (feng shui) in siting the city of Lund or orienting Lund Cathedral. The cathedral was erected on the central elevated ridge of the medieval royal town at the crossroads of Scanian land routes, and its axis adheres strictly to medieval Christian liturgical orientation. The observations below offer a comparative landform reading through the traditional framework of the Hall of Myriad Paths library.
Viewed within the macro-topography of southwestern Skane (Scania) at coordinates 55.7042 degrees north, 13.1936 degrees east, the city of Lund occupies the gentle southwestern slope descending from the horst ridge of Romeleaasen and Helgonabacken (Saints' Hill) toward the fertile agricultural plain of Lundaslaetten and the Oeresund strait (Lomma Bay) eight kilometers to the west. Situated at an elevation of roughly 45 to 50 meters above sea level, the cathedral ridge rises high above the surrounding plain as a commanding terrestrial crown: to the north and northeast, the rising terrain of Helgonabacken and the Romeleaasen ridge provides a steady backing slope, while to the south and southwest the valley of the Hoeje aa river winds past the foot of the city hill toward the Oeresund like an outer jade-belt watercourse.
In terms of axial alignment and surrounding bright halls, Lund Cathedral is oriented along a classical west-to-east liturgical axis. Its twin 55-meter western towers (Lunna paagar) face the open paved plaza of Domkyrkoplatsen, which serves as the civic fronting bright hall gathering pedestrians from the historic town center; at the eastern end, the three-tiered Romanesque apse and high choir rest against the tranquil, century-old tree canopy of Lundagaard Park (the eleventh-century royal enclosure that became the historic heart of Lund University in 1666). This intimate spatial union between the twelfth-century cathedral and the surrounding university groves creates a classic scholarly-and-sacred convergence, anchoring Lund for over nine hundred years as the preeminent seat of theology, science, and culture in southern Scandinavia.
VDaily Processions of the Astronomical Clock, the Consecration Anniversary on September 1, and Lund University Doctoral Conferrals
Liturgical life at Lund Cathedral follows the Evangelical Lutheran calendar of the Church of Sweden (Gregorian system) with daily prayers, weekly organ recitals, and centuries-old academic ceremonies of Lund University.
| Time of Day, Week, or Year | Calendar System | Liturgical Service or Historic Tradition | Rites and Customs at Lund Cathedral |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily at 12:00 noon and 3:00 p.m. (Sundays at 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.) | Daily | Playing of the Astronomical Clock (Horologium mirabile Lundense) and Procession of the Three Kings | Twice every day, crowds gather in the north aisle as the clock's rooftop knights strike their swords, the mechanical organ plays In dulci jubilo, and the carved figures of the Three Magi process out to bow before the Virgin and Child. |
| Every Sunday and Weekday | Weekly | Sunday High Mass (Hoegmaessa), Midday Crypt Prayers, and Saturday Morning Organ Matinees | Solemn Sunday morning Lutheran Eucharist at 11:00 a.m., weekday midday prayers, and Saturday morning organ concerts (Orgelmatine) on the 7,074-pipe Marcussen organ. |
| Late May each year | Gregorian | Lund University Doctoral Conferral Ceremony (Doktorspromotionen) | Dating back to the seventeenth century, faculty and new doctors process in academic regalia from Lundagaard into the cathedral to receive doctoral hats, laurel wreaths, and gold rings in Latin amidst cannon salutes and cathedral bells. |
| August 10 and September 1 | Gregorian | Feast of Saint Lawrence (Larsmaess, Aug. 10) & Cathedral Consecration Anniversary (Sept. 1, 1145) | Commemorates the cathedral's medieval patron Saint Lawrence and the solemn consecration of the completed Romanesque cathedral by Archbishop Eskil on September 1, 1145. |
| October 31 | Gregorian | Reformation Day & Anniversary of the 2016 Joint Catholic-Lutheran Commemoration in Lund | Annual ecumenical services uniting Lutheran, Catholic, and other Christian congregations in remembrance of the historic October 31, 2016 prayer service presided over by Pope Francis and Lutheran leaders. |
| December 13 and December 24 to 25 | Gregorian | Saint Lucy Candlelight Concerts (Dec. 13) and Christmas Morning Julotta | Candlelit choral processions on Saint Lucy's Day and festive Christmas Eve and early Christmas morning liturgies filling the medieval stone basilica. |
A cathedral where medieval stone and modern academic life meet every day. With more than 700,000 visitors and 90,000 worship participants annually, Lund Cathedral is one of the most active historic churches in Northern Europe. Because it stands directly beside Lundagaard Park and the main buildings of Lund University, the 900-year-old sanctuary is woven into the daily rhythm of students, scholars, and citizens, offering a living sanctuary of music, ecumenical dialogue, and quiet reflection in the heart of Scania.
VILocation And How To Get There
- Address
- Kyrkogatan 6 (Domkyrkoplatsen), 222 22 Lund, Skane County, Southern Kingdom of Sweden
- Getting there
- Lund Cathedral stands on Domkyrkoplatsen (Kyrkogatan 6) in the historic center of Lund in Skane County, southern Sweden. From Lund Central Railway Station (Lund C), the cathedral is an easy 400-meter walk (less than 5 minutes on foot) straight east along the cobbled streets of the old town. For international travelers arriving via Copenhagen or Copenhagen Airport (Kastrup, Denmark), direct Oeresundstaag trains cross the Oeresund Bridge to Lund Central Station every 15 to 20 minutes (taking just 35 to 40 minutes from Copenhagen Airport, or 12 minutes from Malmoe).
- Coordinates
- 55.7042, 13.1936
Lund Cathedral is open daily free of charge year-round (typically 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on weekdays and 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekends). Visitors wishing to witness the automated procession of the Three Kings and hear the medieval melody of the Astronomical Clock (Horologium mirabile Lundense) should gather in the north nave aisle 10 to 15 minutes before 12:00 noon or 3:00 p.m. on weekdays and Saturdays (on Sundays, the first performance takes place at 1:00 p.m. after the 11:00 a.m. High Mass, followed by the second at 3:00 p.m.). Be sure to descend the stone stairs into the untouched 1123 Crypt (Kryptan) to see the carved pillar of Giant Finn. Inside the cathedral and crypt, visitors are asked to speak softly, remove hats, and refrain from sightseeing photography during active worship services.
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?Quick Questions
Why was Lund Cathedral historically so important for the entire Nordic region?
In 1104 (when the province of Scania belonged to the Kingdom of Denmark), Pope Paschal II elevated Lund to become the Metropolitan Archbishopric of All the North (Metropolis totius Septentrionis). For centuries, the Archbishop of Lund held primatial ecclesiastical authority over all dioceses across Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and Greenland.
When was Lund Cathedral built, and who was its medieval architect?
Following the royal endowment charter of King Canute IV on May 21, 1085, construction of the present sandstone basilica began in the early twelfth century under the Italian architect and master mason Donatus from Lombardy (together with the sculptor Regnerus). The subterranean Crypt was consecrated on June 30, 1123, and the completed Romanesque cathedral was consecrated by Archbishop Eskil on September 1, 1145.
What is the Legend of Giant Finn in the crypt of Lund Cathedral, and what does the carving actually represent?
According to Scanian folklore, the giant Finn agreed to build the cathedral for Saint Lawrence (Sankt Lars) on condition that if the saint could not guess his name before the last stone was laid, the saint would forfeit his eyes. When Saint Lars overheard Finn's wife singing the giant's name to her child, Finn tried to pull down a crypt pillar in anger and was turned to stone along with his wife and child. Art historians identify the twelfth-century Romanesque sculpture as the Old Testament hero Samson upholding the pillar of the Church.
What is the Horologium mirabile Lundense, and when does it play each day?
The Horologium mirabile Lundense (Wondrous Clock of Lund) is a nearly 7-meter-tall medieval astronomical clock originally built around 1424 and restored in 1923. Featuring an upper astrolabe dial of the sun, moon, and zodiac and a lower perpetual calendar running to the year 2123, it comes to life twice daily (at 12:00 noon and 3:00 p.m., or 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. on Sundays) as two rooftop knights strike the bell, a mechanical organ plays In dulci jubilo, and carved figures of the Three Kings process before the Virgin and Child.
What historic global event took place at Lund Cathedral on October 31, 2016?
On October 31, 2016, to open the 500th anniversary commemoration of the Protestant Reformation (1517 to 2017), Pope Francis and the leaders of the Lutheran World Federation and the Church of Sweden jointly presided over a historic ecumenical prayer service inside Lund Cathedral and signed the Joint Statement of Lund, committing Catholics and Lutherans to reconciliation and shared humanitarian service.
Why are the twin towers of Lund Cathedral called Lunna paagar?
In the local Scanian dialect, Lunna paagar affectionately means the Lads of Lund (or the Boys of Lund). Rebuilt to their present 55-meter Romanesque form between 1860 and 1880 by architect Helgo Zettervall, the twin sandstone spires are the defining skyline landmark of the city and university of Lund.