Espoo Cathedral ( fi, Espoon tuomiokirkko, sv, Esbo domkyrka) is a medieval stone church in

Espoo Espoo (, ; sv, Esbo) is a city and municipality in the region of Uusimaa in the Republic of Finland. It is located on the northern shore of the Gulf of Finland, bordering the cities of Helsinki, Vantaa, Kirkkonummi, Vihti and Nurmijärvi ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

, and the seat of the

Diocese of Espoo The Diocese of Espoo (Finnish ''Espoon hiippakunta'') is the newest of the nine dioceses of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland. The diocese came into existence in 2004 after the Diocese of Helsinki was split in two. The seat of the dioc ...

of the

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland ( fi, Suomen evankelis-luterilainen kirkko; sv, Evangelisk-lutherska kyrkan i Finland) is a national church of Finland. It is part of the Lutheran branch of Christianity. The church has a legal positio ...

. The cathedral is located in the district of

Espoon keskus Espoon keskus (Finnish for ''Espoo Centre'', sv, Esbo centrum) is the central district of Espoo, the second biggest city of Finland and the administrative centre with the city hall of Espoo. The areas of Kiltakallio, Kirkkojärvi, Saarniraivi ...

, near the Espoonjoki river. The oldest parts of the church were completed in the 1480s and it is thus the oldest preserved building in the city. The church became a

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

in 2004 after the Diocese of Espoo was split off from the

Diocese of Helsinki The Diocese of Helsinki ( fi, Helsingin hiippakunta; sv, Helsingfors stift) is a diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, and the seat of the Bishop of Helsinki. Its cathedral is Helsinki Cathedral. The diocese was established in ...

. The cathedral grounds include a graveyard, a vicarage and a parish hall completed in 1995. In addition to being the seat of the Diocese of Espoo, it serves as the church for the Espoo Cathedral Parish and hosts various concerts and other events including the "Organ Night and Aria" concert series.

History

The church was originally designed in the late 15th century by an unknown "Espoo master" and built between 1485 and 1490 under his supervision. The only remaining parts of the medieval church are the eastern and western parts of the nave. The weapons room was removed between 1804 and 1806 and certain other parts of the church, including the original

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 ...

, were taken apart between 1821 and 1823 when the building was converted into a more spacious cruciform church. The vaults and walls of the older parts of the cathedral are decorated with murals, largely painted in the 1510s, that depict both biblical scenes and events in the daily life of the people. The paintings were covered in the 18th century as they were thought to be "crude and superstitious" but uncovered again and conserved during renovations in 1931. The current

campanile A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell tower ...

of the cathedral was completed in 1767 and its top part was redone between 1868 and 1869.

Image gallery

File:Espoo_cathedral_fresco.jpeg, Fresco File:Espoo_Cathedral_frescos.jpg, Frescos File:Espoo_Cathedral_interior1.JPG, Interior File:Espoo_cathedral_pulpit.JPG, Pulpit File:Espoo_Cathedral_interior2.JPG, Organ File:Espoo_tuomiokirkko,_urut,_organ.jpg, Organ File:Espoo_cathedral_vault.JPG, Vault File:Espoo_Cathedral_interior1.JPG, View from pew File:Espoo_Cathedral.jpg, Exterior

References

External links

History
{{Authority control Churches completed in 1490 15th-century churches in Finland Buildings and structures in Espoo Lutheran cathedrals in Finland Gothic architecture in Finland Tourist attractions in Uusimaa

History

Image gallery

References

Further reading

External links