The remains of the Orphir Round Church (or Round Kirk), dedicated to
Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas of Myra, ; la, Sanctus Nicolaus (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Myra in Asia Minor (; modern-da ...
, are located in
Orphir
Orphir (pronounced , Old Norse: Jorfjara/OrfjaraPedersen, Roy (January 1992) ''Orkneyjar ok Katanes'' (map, Inverness, Nevis Print)) is a parish and settlement on Mainland, Orkney. It is approximately southwest of Kirkwall, and comprises a se ...
Parish on the Mainland of
Orkney
Orkney (; sco, Orkney; on, Orkneyjar; nrn, Orknøjar), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) north ...
,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
. It has been a
scheduled monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change.
The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...
since 2014.
Description
It consisted of an apse on the eastern side of its wide circular nave. It consisted of a circular
nave
The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...
about six metres in diameter with a semicircular
apse
In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an ''exedra''. In ...
with a central window. The walls are one metre thick.
History
It is thought to have been built by jarl (earl)
Haakon Paulsson (earl from 1103 to 1123) as penance for murdering his cousin and co-ruler
Magnus Erlendsson
Saint Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney, sometimes known as Magnus the Martyr, was Earl of Orkney from 1106 to about 1115.
Magnus's grandparents, Earl Thorfinn and his wife Ingibiorg Finnsdottir, had two sons, Erlend and Paul, who were twin ...
(later Saint Magnus) in the late 11th or early 12th century. According to the
Orkneyinga saga, earl Haakon took sole power in 1117 after the killing of Magnus, and the round kirk was later rededicated to St Magnus. The saga refers to a "large drinking-hall" with a "magnificent church" nearby. The remains of the drinking hall, known as the Earl's Bu, can still be seen, as well as a later Norse horizontal watermill.
It is the oldest surviving round church in Scotland, which are rare, the only other round medieval church in Scotland, is found at
Roxburgh near the English border.
The building's design was inspired by the
Church of the Holy Sepulchre
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, hy, Սուրբ Հարության տաճար, la, Ecclesia Sancti Sepulchri, am, የቅዱስ መቃብር ቤተክርስቲያን, he, כנסיית הקבר, ar, كنيسة القيامة is a church i ...
in Jerusalem because at the time the Crusades were occurring and the circular church became popular design with returning crusaders attempting to copy the famous structure.
Modern Church
Almost the whole church survived until 1757, when most of it was demolished to provide stone for the new parish kirk, which has also now been demolished. Only the apse and a small segment of the round kirk's nave wall now survive. The site is now in the care of
Historic Environment Scotland and is open to the public.
The remains are protected as a
scheduled monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change.
The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...
.
Archaeology
Geophysical survey
Geophysical survey is the systematic collection of geophysical data for spatial studies. Detection and analysis of the geophysical signals forms the core of Geophysical signal processing. The magnetic and gravitational fields emanating from the E ...
s have proved to not be very effective in investigating the remains of the church but excavations have been more effective in understanding the history and development of the church.
Images
File:Orphir - round church - geograph.org.uk - 400899.jpg
File:Orphir - round church - geograph.org.uk - 55906.jpg
File:Orphir round kirk st nicholas 2.jpg
References
External links
*
{{coord, 58.9219, N, 3.1567, W, source:wikidata, display=title
Round churches
11th-century church buildings in Scotland
12th-century church buildings in Scotland
11th-century establishments in Scotland
12th-century establishments in Scotland
Archaeological sites in Orkney
Scheduled Ancient Monuments in Orkney
Churches in Orkney
Scandinavian Scotland
Historic Environment Scotland properties
Mainland, Orkney