Stave Churches
Norway has about 29 surviving stave churches, scattered along the southern half of the country, mainly along the western fjords and valleys. They are built entirely of wood, and some of them are nearly 1000 years old, the last standing examples of an architectural form that was once widespread in Europe. Above is the Kvernes stave church (built in the 13th or 14th century) near Kristiansund, which we visited as we drove south from Trondheim. It's relatively plain on the outside, but is framed with the big posts and beams that define stave architecture, and as with all these churches the dim interior (no photography) is full of interesting artifacts and details, accumulated over centuries -- carved and painted woodwork, an elaborate pulpit, paintings.
Here is the stave church at Lom, near Jotunheimen. The dragon's head roof ornaments outnumber the crosses, a carryover from the days of Odin, Loki and Thor, as Norway converted to Christianity during the 11th century. Despite the pagan trappings, the church is still the main local parish church.
As usual, indoor photography was prohibited, so we bought some commercial slides of the Lom church interior.
The carefully fitted posts and beams that are the hallmark of stave construction are mostly hidden in the gloom -- the carving and colors were added in more recent centuries. The angels flanking the alter were carved by two young boys from Lom while they hid out in the mountains, having deserted from the army during a war with Sweden. The angels apparently bought them pardons from the death penalty for deserters.
We went far out of our way to visit the Urnes stave church (below). We read about in a guidebook as we were driving along Sognefjord toward Jotunheimen, but just missed the ferry that would have taken us across the fjord to visit it.
The guidebook raved about the ancient carvings, recycled from an even older church and the only surviving representatives of an earlier style, more Viking and less Christian than what came after. So after we finished our hike in Jotunheimen we backtracked quite a bit so we could visit it. It turned out to be a quick visit because we had to catch the ferry back. But it was still pretty breathtaking, particularly this carved panel. You had to wonder about a culture that could produce such a thing of beauty 1,000 years ago.
The carvings are preserved by annual painting with pine pitch, and have also survived because they are on the north side of the church and so protected from sunlight. They are extraordinarly lovely, delicately carved in heavy wooden panels. No one really knows what the animal on the far lower left is meant to be. It looks like a deer biting a snake. The guide offered various religious interpretations, but the fact remains, the real message of this panel is lost in time.