The record-union., 1893-12-23

SACRAM
architectural style. The most prominent
object in all these huddled structures is
always the farm 'storhaus," which rises
story above story, each upper story pro-
jecting beyond the one beneath it. like
huge pagoda turned bottomside upward
and stood upon its roof Continuous
hanging balconies often extend entirely
around each story. Curious outside
stairs ascend to each, The quaintest of
carving of demons heads and serpents
often ornamented every available portion
of outer space, and fantastic carved wood
en- horns project from the corners OF the
caves, or seem ready to blaze from the
peaks OF the root. In out of the way
places watermills Of equally curious and
almost barbaric design will be found.
These structures are all very ancient, but
the flattened arches of The Moors, the Pc
culiar natural and reversed forms of the
Chinese pagOda, and that protusiOn OF
grotesque carvings characteristic, in wood
and stone, in all the most ancient ham
let's Of the Mediterranean countries, re-
appear in this stern northern land with
surprising frequency and certainty of
recognition.
The ancient and tiny pine churches of
Norway are regarded by travellers as
among The most interesting curiosties of
the country. The best examples are
those of Borgund, in Laerdal, the Hitter
dial Church, that of Lom, near Andvord,
Urn3s, beside the Lyster Fiord, and that
of Eidsborg in the Telemarken district.
All these churches are called in Norway
'Stavekirker, or StaVe-churcheS, be-
cause all were originally constructed by
the ''reisyark." or perpendicular method
OF joining the hewn pine timbers in their
walls. The same treatment extended to
porches and to all portions Of the super
structures. The ''stavekirker" of Bor-
gund, Hitterdal Lom and Urnas are the
more noted. All are still used as houses
of worship, save the Borgund Church,
which is now national curiosity, pro-
tected from desecratiOn and decay by the
Antiquarian Society of ChristIania.
OF these ''stavekirker" the Borgund
/ Church is the tiniest, most primitive and
ancient, the Hitterdal Church the most
unique and symmetric, If not, indeed,
| beautiful, and the Church of Urnes most
interesting from its proximity to prehis-
tOric surroundings. Borgund, in the
heart of deep valley, set roundabout
with snow-capped mountains, suggests
toy church dropped there in the vagrant
play OF some infant god of Morse mythol-
Ogy. 1t has almost the true pagoda form,
diminishing, square and steep-slanted
IOO1Sy 1iSilS dDON6 OdCl1 OOJOIg lAO bllIANA
extremely protruding and prominent.
This is, in turn, surmounted by dis
tinct structure with disproportionally
large roof, from which rises central
pinnacle, very like the minaret of
mosque, the peaked gables of the highest
two stories being provided with most dis
tinctly Oriental outwardly carving, horn
shaped ornamentations. It's entire out
ward appearance is barbaric and gro
tesque, and but tor its quaint half Gothic,
half \ orman porcheS, strlklngly like the
sunny south porchess of the very ancient
parish churches of England, would sug-
gest that it's dark interior was fitting
housing only for some gigantic fire
belching Hindoo god. Its inner dimen-
sions are ridicuously small. The nave
is but twenty-three feet long and about
twenty wide; the chancel is only sixteen
feet long and eleven IN width, but is
one mass Of carvings old crosses,
horrible delineations of the passions, gro
tesque dragon heads, and lOathsOme in
tertwined serpents, lnterspersed with
Runic inscriptions, as though in the
stern olden days, none might near the
sacred presence without visible token OF
| those earthly powers which delight in
conjuring an eVer-preSent hell.
The Hitterdal Church is more SYM
metric than that of Borgund. Its dimen-
sions are somewhat greater, and its six
steep shingled roofs are carried to a far
greater hight. Three curious towers rise
! at equal gradient. The lowest above the
apse, and the second above the chancel
are circular in form, have cone-shaped
peaks like neatly thatched English hay
stacks, and the third, above where the
nave is separated from the chancel by
the diminutive transept, is sharply peaked
! from above square tower. The three
towers sustain huge carved wooden
crosses. An interesting popularity Of its
interior is that the central tower is sup
ported by wooden columns of tremend
Gus hight, each one of which is a single
tree OF Norway pine, stripped of its bark,
and whose dimensions have never been
eQualed in any tree since found in Nor
Wegian forests. Among other curiOSities
of the Hitterdal Church is chair of re-
markable solidity standing beside the
altar. Its carvings are amazing in their
character and proiusion, and it is pretty
well settled by antiquarians that it was
made in the year 800. This leaves it
among the Oldest, If not the oldest, OF
wooden chairs in existence. Two facts
should be kept in mind regarding these
ancient 'Stayekirker," which certainly
add greatly To their antinque interest.
No other material but pine has been used
in their construction or restoratious, and
every one was originally built after the
true church form. Each one possesses q
nave, a chanceI and side aisles, usually
transepts giving the outlines of the Cross,
and they all stand east and west with the
altar and apse at the head or east end of
the cross.
On the east bank of the Lyster Fiord,
opposite Solvern. is perched the lonely
hamlet OF Urnas. But a tiny patch of
| tillable land surrounds it, and then come
the mountains which pierce the clouds
above. Jutting out into the gloomy ford
| is little cone-like promontory. Upon
! the poak of this stands the lonely
''stavekirke" of Urnes. Antiquarians
| tell us that here once stood a temple to
Thor. Scattered all about are huge
mounds, called 'K@mpehouge," where
mighty Vikings and prehistoric heroes
| lie buried. One feels at weird old Urn8s
as though he has come to the very inner
temple of \ Orse antiquity and mythology.
! The church itself inIensifies this weirdly
| fascinating feeling. To my mind its
! lonely situation and somber interior
pique the fancy to a more intense and
searching grasp upon the mighty past of
| NOrseland than any other spot or scene
| in Norway. The pine beams of the inte-
rior are tremendous in size and black
with age. The carvings axe even more