Tjøme Church ( no, Tjøme kirke) 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 in Færder Municipality in

Vestfold Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered 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 the ...

. It is located in the village of Tjøme. It is the church for the Tjøme

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 Tønsberg domprosti ( deanery) in the

Diocese of Tunsberg Tunsberg is a diocese of the Church of Norway. It includes parishes located within the counties of Vestfold and Buskerud, with the cathedral located in Tønsberg. The Diocese of Tunsberg consists of the cathedral deanery and 9 rural deaneries. Hi ...

. The stone and brick church was built in a long church design in 1867 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 ...

Anders Thorød. The church seats about 320 people.

History

The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1398, but the church was not built that year. The church may have been built in the 13th century. It was a stone church that was dedicated to

Saint Olaf Olaf II Haraldsson ( – 29 July 1030), later known as Saint Olaf (and traditionally as St. Olave), was King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. Son of Harald Grenske, a petty king in Vestfold, Norway, he was posthumously given the title '' Rex Per ...

. The Romanesque stone church had a rectangular

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 ...

and a smaller, narrower, rectangular

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

with an internal

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''. ...

at the east end of the choir. By the mid-19th century, the church had become too small for the parish and plans for a new church on the same site were made. In 1865, the old church was torn down and construction began on the new church. Some stone from the old church was re-used in the construction of the new church. The new building was designed by Anders Thorød. It had a large rectangular

with a smaller

to the east and a

church porch A church porch is a room-like structure at a church's main entrance. A porch protects from the weather to some extent. Some porches have an outer door, others a simple gate, and in some cases the outer opening is not closed in any way. The porch ...

and tower on the west end. The choir was flanked by

vestries A vestry was a committee for the local secular and ecclesiastical government for a parish in England, Wales and some English colonies which originally met in the vestry or sacristy of the parish church, and consequently became known colloquially ...

. The exterior of the church was built of

larvikite Larvikite is an igneous rock, specifically a variety of monzonite, notable for the presence of thumbnail-sized crystals of feldspar. These feldspars are known as ''ternary'' because they contain significant components of all three endmember f ...

and brick. It was consecrated by the bishop on 12 September 1867. Inside, there is a second-floor seating gallery on the west end and along the north wall of the nave. Much of the interior furnishings were transferred from the old church building into this one. The church was extensively restored in 1949–1950, again in 1991, and again in 2004–2006.

Inventory

A carved baroque altarpiece and a pulpit with figures of the evangelists were both created in the period from 1670–1676. The stained-glass windows were made in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

and were consecrated in 1901. There are four church bells in the tower; two from

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

dating to 1707 and 1712 and two were cast in 1937 at

Olsen Nauen Bell Foundry The Olsen Nauen Bell Foundry ( no, Olsen Nauen Klokkestøperi) is a Norwegian bell foundry located in the municipality of Tønsberg. The foundry was established in 1844 by Ole Olsen, and it is headed today by the sixth generation of the Olsen ...

Tønsberg Tønsberg , historically Tunsberg, is a city and municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, eastern Norway, located around south-southwest of Oslo on the western coast of the Oslofjord near its mouth onto the Skagerrak. The administrative c ...

. The cemetery outside the church is the site of the grave of author

Alf Larsen Alf Larsen (22 July 1885 – 12 December 1967) was a Norwegian poet, essayist and magazine editor. Biography Larsen was born at Tjøme in Vestfold, Norway. he was the eldest of seven children born to Alfred Larsen (1859-1905) and Kristi ...

(1885-1967).

Media gallery

Tjøme kirke.JPG Tjøme kirke Lutheran church nygotisk langkirke 1866 Arch. Anders Thorød summer. Færder Municipality, Vestfold County, Norway. Southern wall Kirkegård gravsteiner Cemetery 2023-07-21 IMG 8367.jpg Tjøme kirke Lutheran church nygotisk langkirke 1866 Arch. Anders Thorød summer. Færder Municipality, Vestfold County, Norway. Port steingjerde dør portal tårn gate tower trær trees 2023-07-21 IMG 8387 2.jpg Tjøme kirke Lutheran church nygotisk langkirke 1866 Arch. Anders Thorød summer. Færder Municipality, Vestfold County, Norway. Kirkegård gravsteiner Cemetery port steingjerde dør portal 2023-07-21 IMG 8377.jpg Tjøme kirke Lutheran church nygotisk langkirke 1866 Arch. Anders Thorød summer. Færder Municipality, Vestfold County, Norway. Front portal dør trapp 2023-07-21 IMG 8374.jpg Tjøme kirke Church nygotisk langkirke 1866 Architect Anders Thorød Winter afternoon light No snow Tårn Tower Færder Vestfold Norway 2020-01-20 2058.jpg Tjøme kirke Church nygotisk langkirke 1866 Architect Anders Thorød Winter afternoon light No snow Færder Vestfold Norway Dør Door 2020-01-20 2028.jpg Tjøme kirke Church nygotisk langkirke 1866 Architect Anders Thorød Færder Vestfold Norway Port Gate Portal dør plakett Winter afternoon light No snow Vår Spring 2020-01-20 2067.jpg TJØME KIRKE (church) Færder kommune Norway Interiør (interior) Bisettelse Bårebuketter etter kiste er båret ut (funeral bouquets after coffin is carried outside) Kirkerom kirkeskip inngang benker galleri orgel etc (2021) 9362.jpg TJØME KIRKE (church) Færder kommune Norway Interiør (interior) Bisettelse Bårebuketter etter kiste er båret ut (funeral bouquets after coffin is carried outside) Kor altertavle (Abel Schrøder 1670-76) Krusifiks glassmalerier et.jpg TJØME KIRKE (church) Færder kommune Norway Interiør (interior) Koret alter alterring altertavle utskjæringer (altar wood carvings) Abel Schrøder 1670-76 glassmalerier etc (2021) 9354.jpg TJØME KIRKE (church) Færder kommune Norway Interiør (Interior) Prekestol (pulpit) etc Utskjæringer (wood carvings) Abel Schrøder 1670-76 (2021) 9345.jpg Tjøme kirke innside.jpg

References

External links

Photo of the old medieval church
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tjome Church Færder Churches in Vestfold og Telemark Long churches in Norway Stone churches in Norway 19th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1867 13th-century establishments in Norway

History

Inventory

Media gallery

See also

References

External links