Sauda Church

Sauda Church (Norwegian: Sauda kyrkje) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Sauda Municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located in the town of Sauda. It is the main church for the Sauda parish which is part of the Ryfylke prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Stavanger. The white, wooden church was built in a long church design in 1866 using designs by the famous architect Hans Linstow. The church seats about 350 people.[1][2]

Sauda Church
Sauda kyrkje
View of the church in 1950
59.651796°N 6.354378°E
Location	Sauda Municipality, Rogaland
Country	Norway
Denomination	Church of Norway
Churchmanship	Evangelical Lutheran
History
Status	Parish church
Founded	14th century
Consecrated	26 Sept 1866
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	Hans Linstow
Architectural type	Long church
Completed	1866
Specifications
Capacity	350
Materials	Wood
Administration
Parish	Sauda
Deanery	Ryfylke prosti
Diocese	Stavanger bispedømme
Norwegian Cultural Heritage Site
Type	Church
Status	Not protected
ID	85401

History

View of the church in 1913.

The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1467, but the church was not new that year. The first church was a stave church that was located in the village of Saudasjøen. In 1624, a new tower was added to the old church building. In the mid-1700s, the old church was in need of a renovation, so the old choir was torn down and rebuilt. In 1806, the church was again renovated. This time, the whole building except for the choir was torn down and rebuilt. After the renovation, nothing was left of the original medieval stave church.[3]

In 1864, the parish decided to move the church site to the larger village of Sauda, about 3.5 kilometres (2.2 mi) to the northeast. The new church was completed in 1866 and it was consecrated on 26 September 1866 by the parish priest P. R. Hoffgaard on behalf of the Bishop Jacob von der Lippe. The old church was closed after the new church was completed and then in 1868, the old church was torn down and its materials were sold to some farms in Finnøy. The land where the old church once stood remains as a graveyard.[3][4][5]

See also

• List of churches in Rogaland

References

1. "Sauda kyrkje". Kirkesøk: Kirkebyggdatabasen. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
2. "Oversikt over Nåværende Kirker" (in Norwegian). KirkeKonsulenten.no. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
3. "Saua kirkested - Sauda gamle kirkested" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
4. "Sauda kyrkje" (in Norwegian). Sauda kyrkjelyd. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
5. "Sauda kirkested / Sauda kirke 3" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage. Retrieved 11 October 2020.