Askvoll Church

Askvoll Church
Askvoll kyrkje
View of the church
Askvoll Church Location in Sogn og Fjordane county Askvoll Church Location in Sogn og Fjordane county
61°20′53″N 5°04′12″E / 61.3481°N 5.0700°ECoordinates: 61°20′53″N 5°04′12″E / 61.3481°N 5.0700°E
Location	Askvoll Municipality, Sogn og Fjordane
Country	Norway
Denomination	Church of Norway
Churchmanship	Evangelical Lutheran
History
Consecrated	13 December 1863
Architecture
Status	Parish church
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	Anders Askevold
Completed	1863
Specifications
Capacity	425
Materials	Wood
Administration
Parish	Askvoll
Deanery	Sunnfjord prosti
Diocese	Diocese of Bjørgvin

Askvoll Church (Norwegian: Askvoll kyrkje) is a parish church in Askvoll Municipality in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. It is located in the village of Askvoll. The church is part of the Askvoll parish in the Sunnfjord deanery in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The white, wooden church has a seating capacity of 425, and it was consecrated on 13 December 1863 by the dean Johan Carl Christie. The artist Anders Askevold designed the church.^[1][2]

History

The present church is the fourth church to be built at this site. The first church was a stave church and it is first written about in historical records in 1306. The next church was built in 1604 and it was a wooden church that was in use until 1859 when it was torn down. The third church was built in 1860 and it was a cruciform church which was struck by lightning and burned down a mere three years after it was built. The fourth (and present) church was built in 1863.^[3]

Steeple

The present church was built in 1863 and public opinion about its look was not particularly positive. In his "Remembrance protocol" the pastor, Bernt Askevold, put it like this: "The new church was built with a simple steeple which rose only a few feet above the roof ridge and with a big wooden cross at the other end of the ridge. But people have never liked the simple shape of the church steeple."

The main objection of the critics, then, was that the wooden cross was meant to serve as a steeple on the church, and, after some 30 years, in 1896, it was replaced by a "proper" steeple. This new steeple was much higher and pointed, and people thought this gave the whole building a somewhat prouder character. The artist Anders Askevold from Askvoll had designed the church with the steeple that people objected so much to. The new steeple was erected based on the design by the master builder P. Gabrielsen, but Askevold was asked for advice beforehand. The latter then made some suggestions what should be done. They used Dale Church in neighboring Fjaler municipality as a model for the new steeple. This new steeple eventually put an end to the complaints concerning the look of the church building.^[3]

See also

• List of churches in Sogn og Fjordane

References

1. "Askvoll kyrkje". Kirkesøk: Kirkebyggdatabasen. Retrieved 2013-12-04.
2. "Oversikt over Nåværende Kirker" (in Norwegian). KirkeKonsulenten.no. Retrieved 2013-12-04.
3. "Askvoll Church". Sogn og Fjordane Fylkesarkiv. Retrieved 2013-12-04.