A historic wooden church in northern Sweden is being moved 5 kilometres down the road as part of the relocation of the mining town of Kiruna.

It Is where underground iron ore extraction has made the ground unstable.

Thousands of onlookers gathered on Tuesday to watch the spectacle, Swedish news agency TT reported.

Television footage showed the 672-ton building rolling through the town on a specially constructed platform.

Kiruna, home to the world’s largest underground iron ore mine, began shifting its town centre several kilometres east years ago due to the growing risk of landslides and building collapses.

The church was built In 1912 in a National Romantic style, is being moved at a pace of about 500 metres per hour.

The relocation Is expected to take two days.

King Carl XVI Gustaf was expected to attend, and on Tuesday evening Swedish Eurovision contestants KAJ were due to perform in Kiruna. (dpa/NAN)