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extends for upwards of 6 Engl. M. along the bank of the lake,
and is about 2 Engl. M. in breadth. On the side next the lake
the Måkeberge (‘gull-hills’, 290 ft.), Elfverums Udde
(‘promontory’), and the RMgafvel (‘red gable’, iAO ft.) rise abruptly from
the water, while the gently sloping E. side of the hill is furrowed
with valleys and richly clothed with forest. The hill consists
chiefly of gneiss and mica-slate, but transition limestone, clay
slate, and sandstone also occur. The highest point is the Hjessun
(‘crown’; 575 ft. above the lake, 845ft. above the sea), at the S.
end, which commands an extensive view, now somewhat curtailed
by the trees. The Omberg is the northernmost place in inland
Sweden where the red beech (fagus sylvaticn) thrives, but in Bohns
Län it occurs as far north as 58° 30’N. latitude. The beautiful
forest is crown property. — We return via *Alvastra
(railway-station, see p. 307), the picturesque ruins of a Bernardine convent,
founded in the 12th cent, by Alfhild fAlfhildsstad, Alvastra), the
wife of King Sverker I. Kings Sverker I., Charles VII., Sverker II.,
and John I., and other illustrious personages, are buried within
its precincts. The church, dedicated to the Virgin, is in the form
of a Latin cross. The nave and aisles and the choir are still
traceable. The W. wall, like that of the choir, contained a large window
with rosettes and divided by a mullion. The whole building,
which was constructed pf limestone, was roofed with barrel-vaulting.
From Hästholmen the steamer slants across the lake to (lVolir.)
Hjo (p. 295), on the W. bank. It then returns to the E. bank. At
Rödyafvels Port the lake attains its greatest depth (410 ft.).
Among the fantastically shaped rocks passed are Munken or
Gra-kurlen (‘the monk’, ‘grey man’), Predikstolen (‘the pulpit’), and
Jungfrun (‘the virgin’). Farther on, visible from the deck of the
steamboat, are the Vestra Väggar and Mullskräema, the An- Udde,
and Borghamn, with its large quarries. The steamer now rounds
the peninsula of Nässja and reaches (3 hrs. from Hjo) —
Vådstena (Hotel Bellevue, near the harbour), a station of the
railway mentioned at p. 307. Vadstena, a town of ancient origin
and now the centre of a laoe-making industry, with 2200 inhab.,
became a place of some importance after the foundation of the
monastery of St. Birgitta (St. Bridget of Sweden) in 1383, around
which it is built. The monastery was suppressed in 1595, and is
now a lunatic asylum. The *Monastery Church, erected in
13951424, called the Blåkyrka from the colour of its stone and by way
of contrast to the brick Rödkyrka, is worthy of a visit. It contains
a monument to Duke Magnus and others of interest. The floor is
paved with tombstones, bearing the Runic characters which formed
the cognisance (bomärke, vapenmärke, sköldmärke) of the deceased.
Queens Philippa and Katarina are also interred here. The sacristy
contains the remains of St. midget and her daughter St. Katarina,
which are preserved in a reliquary covered with red velvet. A
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