Hopperstad stave church was built around 1130, making it one of the oldest surviving stave churches in Norway. It has stood on this exact spot for nearly 900 years, which is remarkable because it very nearly did not survive the 19th century. In 1877, the parish closed it and built a new church. The old building was left to rot.
Three years later, the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Norwegian Monuments bought it. Architect Peter Andreas Blix spent seven years reconstructing it, using Borgund stave church as a reference. He rebuilt the apse, corridors, and roof, but left the nave and choir untouched. What you see today is partly original 12th century and partly 1880s restoration, but the bones of the building are genuinely medieval.
Inside, the western portal has one of the oldest preserved dragon carvings on any stave church in Norway. The baldakin, a 13th century altar canopy resting on two freestanding columns over a side altar, is one of the best preserved of its kind in the Nordic countries. Hopperstad is also the only stave church where the medieval chancel screen is still intact. That one feature alone makes it significant to anyone who cares about church architecture.
The church functions mainly as a museum now, though the parish still uses it for special occasions. There is a full-scale replica of Hopperstad in Moorhead, Minnesota, built by Norwegian-Americans in 1998. The original is better.
Three years later, the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Norwegian Monuments bought it. Architect Peter Andreas Blix spent seven years reconstructing it, using Borgund stave church as a reference. He rebuilt the apse, corridors, and roof, but left the nave and choir untouched. What you see today is partly original 12th century and partly 1880s restoration, but the bones of the building are genuinely medieval.
Inside, the western portal has one of the oldest preserved dragon carvings on any stave church in Norway. The baldakin, a 13th century altar canopy resting on two freestanding columns over a side altar, is one of the best preserved of its kind in the Nordic countries. Hopperstad is also the only stave church where the medieval chancel screen is still intact. That one feature alone makes it significant to anyone who cares about church architecture.
The church functions mainly as a museum now, though the parish still uses it for special occasions. There is a full-scale replica of Hopperstad in Moorhead, Minnesota, built by Norwegian-Americans in 1998. The original is better.