Ringebu Stave Church

Ringebu stave church

The Ringebu Stave Church ( Norwegian Ringebu Stavkyrkje ) is a church building in the Norwegian municipality of Ringebu in Fylke Innlandet . The stave church is one of the largest of the 28 remaining Norwegian stave churches. The church is still used today for congregational worship. Around the building is the community cemetery .

history

The stave church was built on the site of the pre-Christian community and cult site ( Thingstätte ), which is still called Gildevollen ( guild hill) today and was of central importance in Gudbrandsdal in pre-Christian times . The guilds held the secular and religious power of the medieval community and offered military protection through the fraternal relationship. The hill was probably used as a place of judgment and sacrifice in pre-Christian times. Near the church there is still a farm Vang (which translates as corridor ), which is believed to be the religious center and place of the assembly of the community in pagan times.

The old guild Gildevoller , mentioned in letters between 1375 and 1454, was believed to be responsible for building this church.

Building history and architecture

The oldest part of the church was built around 1220 as a stave church on the site of an older church. The building presumably already had a transept at the beginning , but this later disappeared during renovations. It is also assumed that the church, like many stave churches, had an arcade at the beginning, which was able to protect the church walls from the weather and which could serve as a meeting place for the congregation before and after the service.

The church received the characteristic red roof turret and the new transept during a renovation in 1630 by the builder Werner Olsen. During this redesign, which was carried out in the course of the Reformation , the outer walkways, the apse and the aisles were removed. The west portal, carved in dragon style, dates from the Middle Ages.

Furnishing

The bell tower next to the church

A statue from around 1250 shows Laurentius of Rome , two crucifixes also date from the 13th century . The baptismal font of soapstone is from the 12th century. The baroque altar painting dates from 1686. The pulpit of the church is dated 1703. There are also three drawings of animals and a man on the walls. In addition, 18 house signs were discovered on the wall planks. Runes are woven into these graphic symbols . Runes were considered sacred symbols and they were given a protective effect. But also crosses can be found in the house signs. The house signs were also said to have a protective effect in the Middle Ages. The painting on the walls and ceiling from 1717 was restored in 1921 after the interior was temporarily painted white. The old organ was replaced by a new one in 1982. The church got the first organ around 1800.

In the vicinity of the church there is a bell tower in block construction , which was first mentioned in 1577 and was probably built after the Reformation. The bell tower was built for a larger bell. In a written mention from 1575 there are three smaller bells that were housed in a roof turret above the main nave.

In the west wall of the church there are two medieval incisions, which presumably depict domestic pigs or wild boars. The reason for their presence is not known.

Archaeological excavations

During excavations (1980/1981) 892 coins were found in the church, most of which come from the reign of Håkon IV. Håkonsson . The oldest coin is dated to 1020 and was minted in England under Canute the Great .

literature

Roar Hauglid : Norwegian stave churches. Dreyer Verlag, Oslo (Norway), 1977, ISBN 82-09-00938-9
Erich Burger: Norwegian stave churches. History, construction, jewelry. DuMont, Cologne, 1978, ISBN 3-7701-1080-3
Yasuo Sakuma, Ole Storsletten: The stave churches of Norway. Masterpieces of Nordic architecture . Bechtermünz-Verlag, Augsburg, 1997, ISBN 3-86047-239-9

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Sigurd Gierg, Ringebu Stave Church , A Brief Guide, Ringebu Menighetsråd, 1972
↑ Kristian Kildal: Ornamental and abstract uttrykksformer i norsk tre- and metal art: førhistorisk tid, middelalderen, folkekunsten i nyere tid: handbok II: ornamental forming, tre and metal - for art and handverk, skoler and course . Grøndahl, Oslo 1961, p. 21 .

Web links

Commons : Ringebu Stave Church - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Website in German
stavkirke.org (Norwegian)

61.508888888889 10.173333333333Coordinates: 61 ° 30 ′ 32 ″ N , 10 ° 10 ′ 24 ″ E

[grieg-1] Sigurd Gierg, Ringebu Stave Church , A Brief Guide, Ringebu Menighetsråd, 1972

[2] Kristian Kildal: Ornamental and abstract uttrykksformer i norsk tre- and metal art: førhistorisk tid, middelalderen, folkekunsten i nyere tid: handbok II: ornamental forming, tre and metal - for art and handverk, skoler and course . Grøndahl, Oslo 1961, p. 21 .