Åsnes Church ( no, Åsnes kirke) is a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

of the

Church of Norway The Church of Norway ( nb, Den norske kirke, nn, Den norske kyrkja, se, Norgga girku, sma, Nöörjen gærhkoe) is an evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. The church b ...

Åsnes Municipality Åsnes is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Solør. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Flisa, which is also the largest village in the municipality with around ...

Innlandet Innlandet is a county in Norway. It was created on 1 January 2020 with the merger of the old counties of Oppland and Hedmark (the municipalities of Jevnaker and Lunner were transferred to the neighboring county of Viken on the same date). The ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. It is located in the village of

Flisa Flisa is the administrative centre of Åsnes Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. The village lies at the confluence of the rivers Flisa and Glomma. The Norwegian National Road 2 and the Solørbanen railway line both pass through the vil ...

. It is the church for the Åsnes

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

which is part of the

Solør, Vinger og Odal prosti The list of churches in Hamar is a list of the Church of Norway churches in the Diocese of Hamar which includes all of Innlandet county (plus two municipalities in Viken county) in Norway. The list is divided into several sections, one for each d ...

(

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residenc ...

) in the

Diocese of Hamar The Diocese of Hamar ( no, Hamar Bispedømme) is a diocese within the Church of Norway. The Diocese of Hamar includes all of the churches in Innlandet county plus the churches in Lunner in Viken county. Administratively, the diocese is divided ...

. The white, wooden church was built in a

cruciform Cruciform is a term for physical manifestations resembling a common cross or Christian cross. The label can be extended to architectural shapes, biology, art, and design. Cruciform architectural plan Christian churches are commonly described ...

design in 1744 using plans drawn up by an unknown

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

. The church seats about 400 people.

History

1504 Aasnes Kirke - no-nb digifoto 20150810 00047 bldsa PK30142

The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1394, but the church was not new that year. The first church in Åsnes was a wooden

stave church A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church building once common in north-western Europe. The name derives from the building's structure of post and lintel construction, a type of timber framing where the load-bearing ore-pine posts a ...

that was built around the year 1300. This church was located at Åsnes, about south of the present church site (on the opposite side of river

Glomma The Glomma, or Glåma, is Norway's longest and most voluminous river. With a total length of , it has a drainage basin that covers fully 13% of Norway's surface area, all in the southern part of the country. Geography At its fullest length, the ...

). The church was torn down around the 1520s or 1530s and replaced with a new church on the opposite side of the river, near the present site of the church. This new church was built at Telle, about south of the present church site. This building was a wooden

long church Church building in Norway began when Christianity was established there around the year 1000. The first buildings may have been post churches erected in the 10th or 11th century, but the evidence is inconclusive. For instance under Urnes Stave C ...

with a small tower on the roof. In 1686, the church was described as rather fragile and in need of repair. In 1702–1704, the church was renovated and expanded by adding two

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...

s to give the church a

floor plan. It also got a new

sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is usually located ...

and new interior furnishings. Not too long afterwards, in 1720, the church was described as too small and dilapidated. By 1739, the parish decided to tear down the building and to replace it. A new church was built at the present church site from 1744-1747.It was a wooden

building that seated about 600 people (later renovations have lowered this number to about 400). The new building was

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

in 1744, but the building itself was completely finished and ready to use until 1747. The church was refurbished and restored in 1854. In 1876, the church was significantly renovated based on plans by

Jacob Wilhelm Nordan Jacob Wilhelm Nordan (23 February 1824 – 11 April 1892) was a Danish-born, Norwegian architect. During his career, he was one of the most prolific church architects in Norway. Biography Nordan was born in Copenhagen, Denmark and came to Norw ...

and the work was led by

Günther Schüssler Johan Heinrich Günther Schüssler (1835—1898) was a German-born architect and builder who worked in Norway, primarily in the area from Kongsvinger to Lillehammer. Schüssler's work is characterized by neo-Gothic and Swiss chalet style. He ...

. During this project, the roof was removed, the walls were increased about in height, and a new roof was installed. The exterior siding was replaced, and the foundation wall was improved. The

altarpiece An altarpiece is an artwork such as a painting, sculpture or relief representing a religious subject made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting o ...

was painted by artist

Axel Ender Axel Hjalmar Ender (14 September 1853- 10 September 1920) was a Norwegian painter and sculptor, remembered primarily for his genre painting . Biography Ender was born to a farming family at Asker in Akershus, Norway. He began his art studies f ...

in 1876 and is titled ''Jesus' Resurrection''. During a renovation in 1936, the church was closed for several months and parishioners used the nearby

Gjesåsen Church Gjesåsen Church ( no, Gjesåsen kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Åsnes Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the village of Gjesåsen. It is the church for the Gjesåsen parish which is part of the Solø ...

instead. New interior colors were added by the painter

Domenico Erdmann Domenico Juul Erdmann (March 23, 1879 – October 5, 1940) was a Norwegian painter, designer, decorator, and conservation adviser. He was a technical consultant and executive conservator in a number of Norwegian churches.Tore Kirkholt''Store nor ...

in connection with this restoration. There was another major renovation and restoration in 1954–1955 led by Halvor Vreim. Towards the end of 2016, the church was closed due to the discovery harmful fungi growing in the building. Significant work was done to remedy the situation and improve the building while it was closed for three years. The church reopened on 22 December 2019.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aasnes Church Åsnes Churches in Innlandet Cruciform churches in Norway Wooden churches in Norway 18th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1744 13th-century establishments in Norway

History

See also

References