Heddal Stave Church

The wooden Heddal Stave Church is one of the few historical monuments that have managed to be preserved until today. These churches were built only of wooden planks and are unique and "endemic" in Northern Europe. The style and culture of the Vikings is mixed with the religious traditions of Christianity. Among all such buildings, today the wooden Heddal Stave Church is the largest and one of the most beautiful.

Heddal is located in Norway, located in the southern municipality Notodden. It has unique architecture; the church Heddal is able to impress everyone, not only because of its unique shape and appearance, but the fact that Heddal is still a working temple. At first glance the structure seems to have four stories, having a pyramidal shape. On top of the temple is a dome with a cross, visible from afar. Often called the "Great Gothic cathedral of wood", if you see it, you'll see that this definition is not entirely wrong.

No exact date exists for the foundations of Heddal, but it suggests that its structure was built in the 11th and 12th centuries. According to other sources, this wooden church was built a century later. The wooden Heddal Stave Church is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and functions as a Catholic church until the Reformation in 1537. Today, the oldest parts which can be seen in the wooden temple are the Rosy picture, chair of the bishop, and censer - all preserved to this point from the Middle Ages .

The altar of the wooden church Heddal, and most of the murals date from 1600. What is amazing is that about ¼ of the wood of the temple is over 900 years old- since the construction of Heddal. Portraits in the interior have also been preserved from the Middle Ages. Particularly interesting is the gallery which has been preserved on the exterior of the church, because there you can see runic inscriptions.

After the Reformation in the 16th century, the wooden church Heddal is in extremely poor condition, but its restoration was carried out only between 1849 and 1851. The general opinion is that those who have then repaired the church had no knowledge and skills necessary to restore Heddal, as it needed another major restoration in 1950.

According to popular legend, the church Heddal was built in 3 days in those long dark medieval ages. Today the church has become an attractive tourist destination, as curious tourists would like to view the exhibition, which is located in the hall, which is itself behind Heddal. Right here there is a nice cafe where you can actually buy a ticket for entrance into the largest wooden church.