On our way to Nääs Castle last summer (see FMTSO posts Frozen in Time and Windows and Doors) , we also passed a candidate for the FMTSO theme “oldest building”. It is in fact the oldest surviving building of its kind in Sweden: Hedared Stave Church from 1506.
Landscape photo from the neighbourhood of Hedared.
truly amazing building, i like all the paintings on the inside.... logs don't last long here, they rot from the tropic weather and bugs eat them.
ReplyDeleteIt has been renovated of course but it's amazing that it's over five hundred years old.
DeleteWhat a quaint little building, but the interior is so stunning.
ReplyDeleteJama, it was probably a quite common type of church back in early medeival times.
DeleteI would love to visit this building...very unusual. Unheard of here.
ReplyDeleteAdrian, wood was commonly used for building material in Sweden in the past. I've been to many old (stone) churches where they say there was probably a wooden one before it. Most were probably destroyed in fire (or perhaps torn down anyway to be replaced with a bigger stone church).
DeleteThis is SO interesting!!! I have never seen anything like it!! And of course I was planning on leaving a comment asking you to go back and go inside!! And YES!!! Scrolling down, you went IN!! Amazing, that the walls are all painted like that!!! All over!! Totally cool. The oldest church in Sweden, very cool indeed.
ReplyDeleteGinny, I'm not sure it's the oldest of all churches in Sweden, but it is the oldest of its kind. Really old wooden churches are rare because they were so often destroyed by fire.
DeleteHow very beautiful! I love the steeply pitched roof. It definitely has a classic Swedish look to it to me. So far, you have shared the oldest building!
ReplyDeleteRebecca, I like the simplicity of the exterior of this church. There are more old stave churches preserved in Norway - some of those have much more elaborate decorations even on the outside though. Like carved dragons and things. (I've only seen photos of them.)
DeleteWow! Your photos are gorgeous. I found the whole blog fascinating and especially the inside of the church. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked, Ruth.
DeleteWow! Love the contrast between the simple looking exterior and the intricate art inside. And it doesn't look the least little bit old!! Thanks for the history.
ReplyDeleteTrue, Pauline - the interior is a bit of a surprise compared to the exterior!
DeleteWow DT you do have the oldest building for sure. Since I am sportlighter this week I am definitely using this one. The inside is beautiful. I have been well taken care of for sure. I am watching a series on my Kindle called "Wallander." Do you know of this series? It is about a police detective in Sweden.
ReplyDeleteQMM
Thanks Peggy, I'm glad I thought of this church for the theme - I never got round to blogging about it back in the summer just after I visited it. Yes, I know "Wallander", but I neither read nor watched the whole series. A bit too gloomy for my taste, not my favourite. I know it seems to have got quite popular abroad though!
DeleteTruly stunning! The history of the church and its architecture are so interesting!
ReplyDeleteOutside - a rustic little church, inside - magnificent beauty!
ReplyDeleteLovely pictoral!
This is such a contrast to the churches I view both in New Zealand (where there are lots of wooden ones but, of course, none as old as this) and the UK and continental Europe where most of the ones I've been in are stone.
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