With great fanfare, a historic red wooden church considered one of Sweden's most beautiful buildings began its slow move from its longtime home in the Arctic town of Kiruna on Tuesday to allow the expansion of Europe's biggest underground mine.

Kiruna's entire town centre is being moved because of the giant LKAB iron ore mine that dominates the region, whose ever deeper burrowing over the years has weakened the ground, increasing the risk of collapse in some parts.

Kiruna Kyrka, an imposing 672-tonne Swedish Lutheran church from 1912, is being moved five kilometres (three miles) on remote-controlled flatbed trailers, inching along at a pace of half-a-kilometre an hour over two days to the new Kiruna town.

The complex and costly logistical operation kicked off after a blessing by Bishop

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