Holdhus Church ( no, Holdhus kyrkje; historically called ) is a former
parish church 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 ...
in
Bjørnafjorden Municipality in
Vestland county,
Norway. It is located in the village of
Holdhus. Although it is no longer regularly used, it is one of the churches that is part of the Fusa
parish which is part of the
Fana prosti (
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 Bjørgvin
The Diocese of Bjørgvin ( no, Bjørgvin bispedømme) is one of the 11 dioceses that make up the Church of Norway. It includes all of the churches located in the county of Vestland in Western Norway. The cathedral city is Bergen, Norway's second ...
. The brown, wooden church was built in a
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 ...
design in 1726, although part of the building dates to 1618. The church seats about 90 people. The church is notable for its interior decorations. The walls are covered in
Rosemaling, a type of Norwegian folk-art.
History
The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1306, but that is not the year of construction. The first church in the Hålandsdal valley was a wooden
stave church and it was called . It was likely built during the 13th century. In 1618, the old
choir of the church was torn down and a new
timber-framed choir was built in its place. In 1726, the old
nave was torn down and replaced with a new
timber-framed nave which seated 90 people. This new nave was attached to the choir that had been built in 1618. After this, there were no more medieval parts of the church still standing. In 1890, the new
Hålandsdal Church
Hålandsdal Church ( no, Hålandsdal kyrkje) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Bjørnafjorden Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Eide in the Hålandsdal valley. It is one of the churches for the F ...
was completed about to the southeast. When the new church was built, this church was no longer regularly-used as a parish church. In 1889, the old church was sold to Hans H. Holdhus for demolition within two years, but in 1890, Holdhus sold it to the
Society for the Preservation of Ancient Norwegian Monuments. Since then it has been a museum called and it is still used by the parish for special occasions. The new owners provided a comprehensive repair and restoration project for the building in 1905–1906 which was led by the architect
Schak Bull
Schak August Steenberg Bull (10 May 1858 – 25 January 1956) was a Norwegian architect.
Personal life
He was born in Årstad (municipality), Årstad as the son of Colonel Jens Munthe Bull (1815-1905) and his wife Johanne Margrethe Hagerup (18 ...
.
Media gallery
Holdhus kirke.JPG, Winter view of the church
Holdhus kirke, minnestøtte for krigen 1807-1814, Fusa kommune, Hordaland.jpg, Summer view of the church
Holdhus kirke innside.JPG, Interior of the church
Holdhus kirke, prekestolen.jpg, View of the pulpit
Holdhus kirke, veggmalerier.jpg, View of the rosemaling on the interior walls
See also
*
List of churches in Bjørgvin
References
{{use dmy dates, date=May 2020
Bjørnafjorden
Churches in Vestland
Long churches in Norway
Wooden churches in Norway
18th-century Church of Norway church buildings
Churches completed in 1726
13th-century establishments in Norway
Buildings and structures owned by the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Norwegian Monuments
Former churches in Norway
Museums in Norway