Posted on 02/04/2005 4:17:20 PM PST by blam
Ancient church found
The site of a nearly 1,000-year-old church has been found in Skien, making it likely Norway's oldest. Norway may have been converted to Christianity far earlier than believed.
This hole indicates that the site boasted a post church nearly 1,000 years ago.
PHOTO: KJELL-HENRIK SEMB
Christianity in Norway
Christian influence gradually came to Norway via trade, marriage ties, Viking raids, Christian Celtic slaves and eventually missionaries.
Olav the Holy (Olav Haraldsson, St. Olav), who lived from 995-1030, officially introduced Christianity to Norway.
The first churches in Norway were stave and post churches. The only remains of post churches are the holes in the ground where the poles stood, so no one has an exact idea of what they looked like. So far traces from posts of about 30 wooden churches from before the year 1100 have been found.
The remains were found in 2001 but have only now been dated radiologically. Experts believe the find strengthens theories that Norway was Christian in several spots long before Håkon the Good, Olav Tryggvason and Olav Haraldsson began their missionary raids.
"It is fun to see confirmation of what we have long believed, that there was a Christianization of Norway long before the two Olavs came," said Jan Brendalsmo, archeologist at the Foundation for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU).
Associate Professor Jon Vidar Sigurdsson at the Medieval Center at the University of Oslo said that new finds in recent years would likely push the date of Norway's conversion to Christianity to the 800s.
Archeologists believe the post church may be the "Hakastein" mentioned in writing from 1354.
Researchers have also found two Christian graves from 885-990 at the same site.
"The two graves may mean that there is another church on the site. In addition, there can be about 1,100 people buried here over a period of 400 years. So we believe that there is absolutely unique information still buried at the site," said Brendalsmo. Nevertheless, the site is currently destined to become a park.
Baron Georges Cuvier (spelling?) was especially good at it, IIRC.
Actually that would be IMI Kirken in Stavanger. It is not allowed to hold services Sunday morning because that would conflict with the state Lutheran church.
Fascinating. Thanks. JM.
LOL
I was thinking the same as you, until I read the article..
The gravesites however, would tend to validate the assumption that the building was a church.. If not in the beginning, then soon thereafter..
The whole purpose of lutefisk is to push it around on your plate as an excuse to eat all the rest of the good stuff at a Norwegian Lutheran Church dinner.
Was passing through eastern South Dakota in the mid 80's (1986 I think) and stopped in a small town that, as part of its centennial celebration, had a booth run by a local church group offering "free honorary status as a Swede" if you could buy and down some lutfisk and convince them you actually liked it.
Turns out I didn't qualify, but at least it served to warn me off trying haggis to prove I was Scottish.
I've read elsewhere that when Lief Eriksson (/en) went to Canada in or about 1,000 he carried Christianity with his voyage.
Newfoundland, HO!
Well it would still smell the same anyway.
it got warmer again about 1500-1600 and then got colder again. nature doing her thing. (Don't' tell Gore)
Laddie, I'll have ye know tha' Haggis (when properly "annointed" wi' Drambuie) is downright...
harrumph!...
er...
um...
tolerable!
'-}
I've never tried lutefisk. And that's no lye.
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Haggis is delicious (and nothing like lutefisk!)
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