Østre Aker Church is a parish church at the neighborhood of Ulven in northeastern part of

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

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 ...

. The church building from 1860 in neo-Gothic style has exterior walls of

brick A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...

, while the interior walls are covered with wood. The master masonry brothers Carl, Ferdinand and Albert Unger was commissioned to make the church the most alike

Vestre Aker Church Vestre Aker Church is a church at Ullevaal in Oslo that was consecrated in 1855. The church was at first named Aker Church, but was renamed to Vestre Aker Church in 1861. The church is built in Neo Gothic style, drawn by architect Heinrich Ernst ...

as possible. Østre Aker Church was consecrated 5 September 1860 with, among others, Prince Oscar present. Electricity was installed in 1925 and the church got

chandelier A chandelier (; also known as girandole, candelabra lamp, or least commonly suspended lights) is a branched ornamental light fixture designed to be mounted on ceilings or walls. Chandeliers are often ornate, and normally use incandescent li ...

s in 1928. Architect

Helge Thiis Helge Thiis (16 August 1897 – 1 August 1972) was a Norwegian architect. He is most noted for service as head architect at the restoration of Nidaros Cathedral. Background Helge Thiis was born in Trondheim, Norway. He was the son of curator an ...

was at the same time commissioned to make changes to improve the church interior.Østre Aker kirke 1860-1960
written on the occasion of the 100 years anniversary, Oslo, 1960, pp 9-19. The church is in a picturesque landscape and surrounded by many large trees on a green

cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

. In front of the church's main entrance is the

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

"Hvilende kvinne" ("Reclining woman"), made by sculptor

Maria Vigeland Maria Vigeland (13 March 1903 – 8 August 1983) was a Norwegian painter and sculptor. Biography She was born in Copenhagen. She was the daughter of Emanuel Vigeland and niece of Gustav Vigeland. She attended the Norwegian National Academy of C ...

from 1970. Inside the church are eight monolith columns, carved in whole pieces of local ''grefsensyenitt''. The church has a

rose window Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in Gothic cathedrals and churches. The windows are divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery. The term ''rose window'' w ...

promoting the church, designed by Frøydis Haavardsholm and created by art glazier G. A. Larsen. It shows blessing by Jesus of small children. The

baptismal font A baptismal font is an article of church furniture used for baptism. Aspersion and affusion fonts The fonts of many Christian denominations are for baptisms using a non-immersive method, such as aspersion (sprinkling) or affusion (pouring). ...

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

is from 1860. 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 ...

in wood from 1928 is created by

woodcarver Wood carving is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine, or in the sculptural ornamentation ...

Thorleif Sohlberg. The

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...

is located to the left of the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ove ...

. The origin of the 46-voice church organ from the second half of the nineteenth century is disputed. Østre Aker Church is listed 85915 by the

Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage The Directorate for Cultural Heritage ( no, Riksantikvaren or ''Direktoratet for kulturminneforvaltning'') is a government agency responsible for the management of cultural heritage in Norway. Subordinate to the Norwegian Ministry of the Environm ...

.Østre Aker kirkested 85915
Kulturminnesøk

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Østre Aker Church Lutheran churches in Oslo Churches completed in 1860 1860 establishments in Norway 19th-century Church of Norway church buildings Cemeteries in Oslo