The Sister Churches ( no, Søsterkirkene) consist of two 12th-century churches that were built right next to each other in

Gran Municipality is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Hadeland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Jaren. Other villages in Gran include Bjoneroa, Brandbu, Egge, Gran, and ...

Innlandet Innlandet is a county in Norway. It was created on 1 January 2020 with the merger of the old counties of Oppland and Hedmark (the municipalities of Jevnaker and Lunner were transferred to the neighboring county of Viken on the same date). The ...

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 the ...

. They are part of the Church of Norway and are located in the village of Granavollen. They are part of the Gran/Tingelstad

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 o ...

which is part of the

Hadeland og Land prosti The list of churches in Hamar is a list of the Church of Norway churches in the Diocese of Hamar which includes all of Innlandet county (plus two municipalities in Viken county) in Norway. The list is divided into several sections, one for each ...

( deanery) in the Diocese of Hamar. The two churches are both gray stone buildings that were both built in a long church design during late-12th century. The church that sits to the north is called St. Nicholas' Church ( no, Nikolaikirken) and the church that sits to the south is called St. Mary's Church ( no, Mariakirken). According to local folklore, the churches were commissioned by two sisters who had fallen out and therefore would not be seen in the same church. It is, however, not uncommon for medieval churches with different functions to be built close to one another. It is more likely that the smaller Mariakirken was a church for a monastery while the Nikolaikirken was a regular

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, ...

Nikolaikirken

The larger of the churches is called ''Nikolaikirken'' (St. Nicholas Church). This church probably acted as a church for Hadeland rural parish and can seat around 250 people. Because of later rebuilding it is difficult to establish an exact date of construction, but it is likely that this church is newer than the Mariakirken. Based on stylistic evidence, however, it is thought that the church was built sometime between 1150 and 1200. The church is built as a

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's Forum (Roman), forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building ...

church with solid Roman

columns A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression membe ...

and

plaster Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of buildings, while "re ...

ed walls. The shape and design of the choir was changed during the 13th century and this is also when the large tower was constructed. Much of the original interior has been lost in fires and in subsequent rebuilding over the years. Originally, the tower had a high spire, but it disappeared by a fire in 1799. More of the medieval pieces disappeared from the church during a renovation and modernization during the 1860s. During that construction project, the church was closed and the Mariakirken was used instead. In 1814, this church served as an

election church An election church ( no, valgkirke) is a term used for approximately 300 churches in Norway that were used as polling stations during the elections to the Norwegian Constituent Assembly at Eidsvoll in 1814. This was Norway's first national election ...

( no, valgkirke). Together with more than 300 other parish churches across Norway, it was a polling station for elections to the 1814

Norwegian Constituent Assembly The Norwegian Constituent Assembly (in Norwegian ''Grunnlovsforsamlingen'', also known as ''Riksforsamlingen'') is the name given to the 1814 constitutional assembly at Eidsvoll in Norway, that adopted the Norwegian Constitution and formalised t ...

which wrote the Constitution of Norway. This was Norway's first national elections. Each

church 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 ...

was a constituency that elected people called "electors" who later met together in each county to elect the representatives for the assembly that was to meet in

Eidsvoll Eidsvoll (; sometimes written as ''Eidsvold'') is a municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the Romerike traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Sundet. General information ...

later that year.

Mariakirken

The smaller of the churches is ''Mariakirken'' (St. Mary Church), a single

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 ...

church, which either acted as a monastic church or a church for the local Gran parish. It was built sometime before 1150, and contains Romanesque and

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

elements. After the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

, this church was typically only used a few times per year. In 1813, the church was struck by lightning which caused a fire that gutted the church. There were no funds to fix the church, so it sat in ruins until 1859. In 1859, the church was repaired by adding a new roof and new windows as well as a new tower. The reason for this rebuilding was so that this church could be used while the Nikolaikirken was to be closed for a renovation. The church was restored in 1912-1915 and it was used as a burial chapel. In 1990-1992 the church was restored and renovated again and since then has been used as a parish church. It can seat around 150 people.

Churchyard

In the southeastern part of the churchyard there is a medieval stone tower, , the original function of which is unknown. It is possible that the tower, which from the mid-19th century was used as a bell-tower, was originally used as a defence tower or refuge. The 11th century Granavollen Runestone can be found behind the Nikolaikirken. The towers of the Søsterkirkene form the base coat of arms to

. Noted poet and journalist, Aasmund Olafsson Vinje, is buried in the cemetery of Søsterkirkene. A monument with a bust of Vinjes by sculptor Brynjulf Bergslien was erected at the site.

Media gallery

Sisterchurches at Gran.jpg, Søsterkirkene at Granavollen Søsterkirkene.jpg, Søsterkirkene in a wintry Hadeland landscape Granavollen rune stone 2.jpg, Granavollen Runestone outside Søsterkirkene Sisterchurches at Gran, Belltower.jpg, Medieval stone tower by Søsterkirkene Sisterchurches at Gran, Nicolaychurch.jpg, Nikolaikirken Nikolaikirken kor glasmaleri.JPG, Interior of Nikolaikirken Nikolaikirken kor glasmaleri.JPG, Painting of Nikolaikirken Sisterchurches at Gran, Mariachurch.jpg, Mariakirken Mariakirken Gran interior.JPG, Interior of Mariakirken MARIAKIRKEN - an10071203069004.jpg, Mariakirken ruins in 1855

References

External links