Heddal stave church

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Heddal Stave Church, Norway's largest stave church.

Heddal stave church (Heddal stavkirke) is a stave church located at Heddal in Notodden municipality, Norway.

The church is a triple nave stave church and is Norway's largest stave church. It was constructed at the beginning of the 13th century. After the reformation the church was in a very poor condition, and a restoration took place during 1849 - 1851. However, because those who did it didn't have the necessary knowledge and skills, yet another restoration was necessary in the 1950's. The interior is marked by the period after the Lutheran Reformation in 1536/1537 and is for a great part a result of the restoration that took place in the 1950's.

What is known is that five peasants together with Sira Eilif built the church. (ref?)and the man who biult it was blind...

[edit] The Legend

There is a legend telling about the erection of church and how it was built in three days.

Five farmers from Heddal had made plans for a church, and they decided to have it built. This is how it happened:

One day Raud Rygi, one of the five men, Raud Rygi, Stebbe Straand, Kjeik Sem, Grut Grene and Vrang Stivi, met a stranger who was willing to build the church. The stranger, though, set three conditions for doing the job, of which one must have been fulfilled before the church was finished:

Raud had three options, either to fetch the sun and the moon from the sky, forfeit his life-blood, or guess the name of the stranger. Raud thought the last would not prove too difficult, so he agreed to the terms

But Raud got trouble as the time began to run out. All of the building material had arrived during the first night, then the spire was built during the second. It became clear to Raud that the church would be finished on the third day.

Down at heart and fearing for his life, Raud took a walk around in the fields trying to figure out what the stranger's name could be. Still wandering about he'd unconsciously arrived at Svintruberget (a rocky hill south-east of the church site) when he suddenly heard a strange but most beautiful and clearly audible female song:

"Hush-hush little Child,

Tomorrow Finn will bring you the Moon and the Sky.

He will bring you the Sun and a Christian Heart,

so pretty Toys for my little Child to play a Part."

Or in Norwegian

I morgen kommer Finn og bringer oss maanen

der han kommer forgaar sol og kristenblod

lokker barna til sang og spel

men nå mine små, sov stille og vel

Now Raud knew what to do, as the stranger was a mountain troll. As planned, the stranger visited Raud the next day, to give him the church. Together they walk over to the church, and Raud walks up to one of the pillars, hugs around it as to straighten it and says: — Hey Finn, this pillar isn't straight! Finn answers him and says: — I could be even more bent! Then he hastily leaves the church. Raud solved the riddle after all. The stranger's name was Finn and he lived in the Svintru Mountain. Finn, also known as Finn Fairhair or Finn Fagerlokk, a troll, could not ever since stand the sound of church bells, so he moved along with his family to Himing (Lifjell).

The same troll is also to blame for Nidarosdomen, Church of Avaldsnes and Domen i Lund i Sverige.