Årstad Church

Årstad Church (Norwegian: Årstad kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Bergen Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the Årstad neighborhood in the city of Bergen. It is the church for the Årstad parish which is part of the Bergensdalen prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The large, stone church was built in a cruciform design and a Neo-Gothic style in 1890 using designs by the architect Christian Christie. The church seats about 560 people.[1][2]

Årstad Church
Årstad kirke
View of the church
Årstad Church Location of the church Show map of Vestland Årstad Church Årstad Church (Norway) Show map of Norway
60.3751°N 5.3523°E / 60.3751; 5.3523
Location	Bergen, Vestland
Country	Norway
Denomination	Church of Norway
Churchmanship	Evangelical Lutheran
History
Status	Parish church
Founded	Middle ages
Consecrated	26 Nov 1890
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	Christian Christie
Architectural type	Cruciform
Style	Neogothic
Groundbreaking	6 Aug 1890
Completed	1890
Specifications
Capacity	560
Materials	Stone
Administration
Parish	Årstad
Deanery	Bergensdalen prosti
Diocese	Bjørgvin bispedømme
Norwegian Cultural Heritage Site
Type	Church
Status	Protected
ID	85983

History

The earliest existing historical records of Årstad church date back to the year 1564, but it was built before that time. Originally, the stone church was located about 600 metres (2,000 ft) north of the present church site and it was part of the Fana Church parish. The church was called the Church of the Holy Cross (Norwegian: Kirken Hellig Kors) at that time. In the 1600s, the old church was taken out of regular use due to its age and size and the residents of Årstad were sent to the nearby Birkeland Church. The old stone church burned down and was mostly destroyed in the city fire of 1702. It sat unused as a ruin for a long time, and the ruins of the foundation were still visible in 1902. The last remains of the foundation were dug out and removed in 1910.[3][4]

After a long time without a church, a new church was built to replace the old church in 1890. The new church was located about 600 metres (2,000 ft) south of the old church site. The new church was consecrated on 26 November 1890.[5][6]

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See also

• List of churches in Bjørgvin

References

1. "Årstad kirke". Kirkesøk: Kirkebyggdatabasen. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
2. "Oversikt over Nåværende Kirker" (in Norwegian). KirkeKonsulenten.no. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
3. "Kirker i Hordaland fylke" (in Norwegian). DIS-Hordaland. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
4. "Årstad gamle kirkested" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
5. "Årstad kirkested / Årstad kirke 2" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
6. Magerøy, Ellen Marie; Lidén, Hans-Emil. "Årstad kirke" (in Norwegian). Norges Kirker. Retrieved 6 June 2020.