Hedal stave church

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Hedal stave church

Hedal stave church (Hedal stavkyrkje) is a stave church located in Hedal, a small mountainous valley in Sør-Aurdal municipality, Valdres, Norway.

The original church was a much smaller single nave church built second half of 12th century. The west aisle, the entrance, is the original church.

The first reference to the church is in 1327.

The front portal is one of the oldest, most richly ornamented and among the most beautiful in the whole country.

The rework into a cruciform church was done in 1699, but some sources claim 1738. This was a small reconstruction to make a new /takrytter/.

Hedal stave church

Restoration work was done 1902 under direction of Carl Berner. During the restoration work the previous sacristy was replaced with a new choir, and the new parts were enclosed in an ambulatory.

[edit] Interior

To the church there is also a reliquary, made of tree with brass mounted and with scenes from the Bible. This has been a source for inspiration for Sør-Aurdal coat of arms. Another source of inspiration for this has been the Reinli stave church.

The soap stone font, with its conical lid, is of gothic style and it is still in use.

On the madonna cupboard, which forms the altar piece, there is a crucifix of Christ on the cross. This is one of the most beautiful works of medieval art from the Norwegian Middle Ages.

The church also has a madonna piece, and after much controversy it is now back in the church, safely placed in a special mount. There is also a copy of this made in 1990 which is on display if weather conditions makes safe storage necessary.

[edit] The Legend

There is a legend about the church; during the Black Death in the middle of the 14th century Hedalen was depopulated, and the valley became a wilderness. A hunter one day shot an arrow after a bird, but instead of hitting his prey, it missed and struck the bell. Then, there he found the church, standing in the middle of the dense forest.

As the hunter believed this must be a church for huldra or other supernatural beings, he took his flint and steel and threw it over the church. This was something believed to seize property from huldra, and so he wanted to prevent the church from disappearing. On the place where the steel fell, a farm was later built which still has the name Ildjarnstad (Firesteel).

In the church the hunter shot a bear which had made its lair by the altar. The skin from this bear still hangs on the wall of the sacristy.

Truth or tale? In a neighbouring valley, Vassfaret, there is a small national park, and this national park is made specifically as a breeding ground for bears, although in recent years the bears prefer to do business in other landscapes. Perhaps turning Vassfaret into a national park brought with it too many tourists.