Kirkjubøur

Kirkjubøur (Danish: Kirkebø) is the southernmost village on Streymoy, Faroe Islands. The village is located on the south-west coast of Streymoy and has a view towards the islands of Hestur and Koltur towards the west, and to Sandoy towards the south. It lies south of the new ferry port of Gamlarætt, which opened in 1993.[1]

Kirkjubøur
Village
Saint Olav's Church, Kirkjubøur at the left, and the old farmhouse of Kirkjubøargarður at the centre. In the background are the islands of Sandoy and Hestur.
Kirkjubøur
Location in the Faroe Islands
Coordinates: 61°57′22″N 6°47′37″W
State Kingdom of Denmark
Constituent country Faroe Islands
IslandStreymoy
MunicipalityTórshavn Municipality
Population
 (1 January 2009)
 • Total75
Time zoneGMT
 • Summer (DST)UTC+1 (EST)
Postal code
FO 175
ClimateCfc

The village is the Faroes' most important historical site, with the ruins of the Magnus Cathedral from around 1300, Saint Olav's Church (Olavskirkjan), from the 12th century and the old farmhouse of Kirkjubøargarður from the 11th century. In 1832, a runestone was found near the Magnus Cathedral in Kirkjubøur. The stone which is referred to as the Kirkjubøur stone dates back to the Viking Age.[2][3]

The little islet just of the coast, Kirkjubøhólmur, contains an eiderduck colony. To the village belongs the islet of Trøllhøvdi, just 100m off the northern tip of Sandoy 9 km away from Kirkjubøur. It was given as payment to the villagers, as it was their duty to ferry people across to Sandoy in medieval times.[4][5]

History

The village was important in the Middle Ages. At that time it was the episcopal residence for the Diocese of the Faroe Islands and as such the spiritual centre of the society. In those days the village is said to have had around 50 houses. The majority of these houses were washed away by a fierce storm in the 16th century, which created the islet Kirkjubøhólmurin, which contains ruins from that time. It is speculated that the church located the diocese in Kirkjubø, to counter the heathen Vé in Velbastaður only 5 km to the north west up the coast.[6]

Saint Olav's Church

There are three main attractions from this time:

Notable residents

Kirkjubøur chairs

The medieval carved pew ends from Saint Olav's Church are now to be found in the National Museum of the Faroe Islands. These were featured in three series of Faroese stamps, engraved by Czeslaw Slania. For the full series, see here.

  • Mediaeval carved pew ends from Saint Olav's Church
  • Ruins of Magnus Cathedral
  • Map showing the position of Kirkjubøur on Streymoy
  • A blizzard in Kirkjubøur
  • Islet of Kirkjubøhólmur and Saint Olav's Church. Island of Hestur in the distance
  • Kirkjubøur painting by Sámal Joensen-Mikines in Saint Olav's Church
  • Kirkjubøargarður (left), Ruins of Magnus Cathedral (center), Saint Olav's Church (right)
  • Detail of Magnus Cathedral ruins

See also

References
  1. "Kirkjubøur". Visit the Faroe Islands. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  2. "Kirkjubøur". Visit Tórshavn. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  3. "Magnus Cathedral and the Kirkjubøur Village". fotostrasse.com. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  4. "Kirkjubøur". faroeislands.com. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  5. "Velbastaður". Tórshavn Municipality. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  6. Ljunggren, Karl Gustaf (1955-01-01). "Kirkjubøur, Velbstaður og Tórshavn". Fróðskaparrit 1955.
  7. "Magnus Cathedral, Catholic Church · Landmark & Historical Place". Facebook.com. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  8. "The oldest church in the Faroe Islands". tripadvisor.com. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  9. "Kirkjubøargarður". The Vintage News. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
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