Best viewed on BLACK (please press H or click on the Church !) Urnes Stave Church in Luster, beside the Sognefjord, is the only stave church in the world to be included on UNESCO's World Heritage List. A stave church has been built three times on the same site here at Orneset. A hundred years would pass between the first and the third, the one we can visit today, which was built in 1150. It was once a private church for a powerful high-born family. Its builders were aware of international trends in architecture, and transferred these trends from stone to wood. The timber was felled in the years 1129-1130. On the long northern wall, original decorated sections from the demolished church have been used: the portal, wall planks and a corner post. The decorated gables from the same church are now covered to prevent wear and tear.
Urnes Stave Church, Norway
