Lygra Church ( no, Lygra kyrkje) 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 ...

Alver Municipality Alver is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Nordhordland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Knarvik. Other villages include Alversund, Alver, Isdalstø, Lindå ...

Vestland Vestland is a county in Norway established on 1 January 2020. The county is located in Western Norway and it is centred around the city of Bergen, Norway's second largest city. The administrative centre of the county is the city of Bergen, where t ...

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 on the small island of Luro. It is one of the four churches for the Knarvik

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 Nordhordland 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 white, 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 1892 using plans drawn up by the

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 ...

Peter Gabrielsen Spjotøy. The church seats about 180 people. The church is surrounded by a cemetery. Notable burials at the cemetery include

Ludvig Daae Ludvig Daae may refer to: * Ludvig Daae (priest) (1723–1786), Norwegian priest and landowner *Ludvig Kristensen Daa (1809–1877), Norwegian historian and politician *Ludvig Daae (politician) (1829–1893), Norwegian politician *Ludvig Ludvigsen ...

(1723–1786).

History

There has been a church on this island since the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

since this area had been an old royal estate since the time of King Olaf Haroldson. The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1321, but it was built before that time. The first church was a wooden stave church that was likely built during the 13th century. During the early-1600s, the church was torn down and replaced with a new

timber-framed Timber framing (german: Holzfachwerk) and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden ...

on the same site. The

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 ...

measured and 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 ...

measured . In the early 1700s, the church was significantly renovated and rebuilt. On 6 January 1772, the church burned down after being struck by

lightning Lightning is a naturally occurring electrostatic discharge during which two electric charge, electrically charged regions, both in the atmosphere or with one on the land, ground, temporarily neutralize themselves, causing the instantaneous ...

. The old church ruins were torn down and a new church was built to replace it on the same site. The new church 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 ...

exactly one year to the day after the fire, on 6 January 1773. The building was

and it had a rectangular nave measuring and it had a lower, narrower and almost square

measuring about in the east. The church had a tower above the church porch on the west end. The building underwent a major repair in 1866, when new floors, new windows, and new benches were installed. In 1892, the church was torn down and a new church was built on the same site. The architect was Petter Gabrielsen. During the 20th century, a basement was excavated under the church in order to add a coat room, bathrooms, and storage.

Media gallery

Lygra, Norway.jpg Preikestol i Lygra kyrkje.jpg Alter, Lygra kyrkje.jpg Gamal altartavle Lygra open.jpg

References

{{use dmy dates, date=October 2021 Alver (municipality) Churches in Vestland Long churches in Norway Wooden churches in Norway 19th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1892 13th-century establishments in Norway

History

Media gallery

See also

References