[afraidfortherepublic]

I read last year on this board that they found a private chapel (perhaps it was in Greenland) dating from the 1500s. The church was designed for a Viking lady and so small that it could hold only one person. Does anyone remember that article?

[colorado tanker]

Christianity was well established in Greenland. The Eastern Settlement had twelve churches scattered among its farms, including a cathedral at Gardar. For most of the settlement period, the church in Greenland had its own Bishop. In 1112 or 1113, Bishop Eirik is said to have sailed to Vinland, but the result of his voyage is not recorded.

http://members.aol.com/bakken1/viking/vikgrn.htm

Hvalsey Church Close to the town of Qaqortoq in South Greenland lie the ruins of Hvalsey Church, which are Greenland’s biggest and best-preserved ruins from the Viking period. The church was built of stone in the 14th century and measures 16 x 7 metres (52.5 x 22.75 feet). It is situated next to the ruins of a farm complex which is also from the Viking period, and thus provides a good insight into how the Norse settlers lived.

In the Vatican’s annals in Rome there is a historically significant account of a wedding between Thorstein Olafsson and Sigrid Bjørnsdatter in Hvalsey Church in 1408. The records also show that the last wedding guests traveled back to Iceland in 1410. This wedding is the last written evidence of the Viking settlers in Greenland.

http://www.greenland.com/content/english/tourist/culture/the_history_of_greenland/the_viking_period/viking_period_church_ruins