Stave Churches

            The development of the famous stave churches of Norway took place over hundreds of years, evolving from a residential/farm vernacular and from pagan temple ancestors. Over time, construction became increasingly complex. Originally, the vertical posts or staves were set directly into the ground and were later erected upon horizontal timber sill plates and stone footings. The ‘arches’ between the tops of the posts are ‘knee’ braces that meet in the middle and at each post using joinery known as ‘fishing’, similar to grafting in horticulture and a technique well used by the Vikings in shipbuilding. The staves are connected above these arches by long beams and by intermediate ‘clerestory’ timbers. These are often braced by lapping diagonal ‘Saint Andrew’s crosses’ or ‘saltire’ assemblies. The inner timber colonnade and the outer walls create a ‘basilican’ section with the nave buttressed on both sides by a roofed aisle. The emphasis is on height, and this is further accomplished using scissor trusses that support the steep roof, eliminating the need for ceiling tie-beams across the interior space. The exterior of the stave church is of plain exposed wood but is made extraordinary by the multiple cascading roofs that are covered by diamond patterned shingles, giving the building a tree-like appearance. The most spectacular is at Borgund, where six roofs are protected at the gable ends by carved ‘dragons’ heads’, giving the Christian church what Richard Pryce calls a “distinctly Norse pagan quality”. Father Ronald Murphy argues that the Stave church is a Christian Yggdrasil (world-tree). Christ and Odin, both magical sage/kings, met their deaths upon a tree.

There were once over 1000 stave churches in Norway. There are now only 28 remaining. Most were built before 1350CE. The oldest is at Urnes, on the western fjords, circa 1130. In 1349, a ship from Britain ran aground near Bergen, its entire crew taken by the bubonic plague. The plague, known in Europe as the Black Death, devastated the small population of Norway by one third to a half. The resulting lack of population, lack of economic resources, and lack of skilled carpenters meant an end to the stave construction tradition.