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Photo: Kavelgrisen, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Dating back to the 13th century, this impressive red-painted stone church is best known for its tall tower, beautiful interior with vaulted ceilings, and an intricately carved wooden altarpiece. The church overlooks Lake Siljan and serves as a key gathering place for the local community. It holds strong ties to Swedish traditions, especially as the ceremonial starting point of the famous Vasaloppet cross-country ski race.
Mora Church is a church building in Mora in Sweden. It belongs to Mora Parish of the Church of Sweden. It famous for being seen near the Vasaloppet finish line. The size and opulence of the church building, as compared to other churches in the region, is a result of the fact that in medieval times the whole of northern Dalarna was part of the Mora Parish and the church served as the seat of Mora Parish. The church has been dedicated to the archangel Saint Michael since before the Protestant reformation and the establishment of the Church of Sweden in the 16th century. The effigy of Michael and the dragon, as seen in the statue south-west to the churches main gates, was adopted as the coat of arms of Mora in 1946 and continues to be in use to this day. The reason why the church is dedicated to Saint Michael is a mystery, the Mora Parish itself proposes a possible miss identification with the native Scandinavian Saint Olof but nothing conclusive has been put forward as to why this would be the case.
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It's the former home of one of Sweden's most famous painters, Anders Zorn (1860-1920). Together with Carl Larsson (whose home can be visited in Falun) he is the artist who has had the strongest influence on the image of Dalarna and Sweden. The main part of Zorngården consists of Zorn's home and a museum with his art, but there are two other museums that also are part of the Zorn Collection. Gammelgården is in the southern part of Mora and consists of 40-something timber houses that Zorn bought to make sure that the old art of building such houses wasn't forgotten. Gopsmor, Zorn's refuge when the pressure got too high, is in the municipality of Älvdalen and is only open for visitors in July.
The Vasaloppet Museum
A museum dedicated to the race. It has exhibitions about great skiers and interesting events during the 80-something years the race has taken place. Entry for adults is 30 kr, and that includes blueberry soup, the energy drink of choice for Vasaloppet racers.
An open-air museum about forestry and Mora's industrial heritage.