Kvernes Stave Church

Kvernes stands on a low headland facing the sea on the island of Averoy, and it is one of the few stave churches built after the Reformation. Dating has been debated: it was long assigned to around 1300, but dendrochronology in the 2010s suggested the standing structure is largely from the seventeenth century, incorporating older elements, which changed how it is described. The interior is the reason to go, densely painted with seventeenth and eighteenth-century decoration on walls and ceiling, with a rood screen, a carved altarpiece and painted galleries. A new church was built alongside in 1893, which is why the old one survived unaltered. The Atlantic Road runs a few kilometres away along the same coast.

History

The earliest record of a church here dates from 1400, and the stave church was long thought to be from the 14th century, but tree-ring dating presented in December 2019 points to construction around 1631-1633, making it one of few stave churches built after the Reformation (Norwegian Wikipedia, Kvernes stavkirke). After a new church was consecrated about 50 metres away in 1893, the old building was bought in 1894 by a group of individuals and given to the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Norwegian Monuments (Wikipedia, Kvernes Stave Church).

What you'll find

• The painted interior - dense seventeenth and eighteenth-century decoration.
• The rood screen - a carved partition unusual in surviving stave churches.
• The coastal setting - a headland facing the sea on Averoy.
• The 1893 church - the replacement standing beside the old building.

When to go

May to September, the seasonal opening period; outside it the exterior and churchyard can be seen but the interior is locked. The Atlantic Road nearby makes it an easy addition to that drive.

Things to know

Opening is seasonal with short hours and closures for services. The building's dating is contested, so descriptions vary between sources. The interior is small and the visit takes under an hour.

Nearby

The Atlantic Road is a few kilometres away; Kristiansund and Bud lie either side of the coast.

Key facts