Davik Church
Encyclopedia
Davik church is a wooden "long church" in the village of Davik
in the municipality of Bremanger
, Sogn og Fjordane
county, Norway
. The church is a part of the Davik prestegjeld
in the Nordfjord deanery of the Diocese of Bjørgvin
.
The church, with a seating capacity of 500, was consecrated on 6 July 1886 by the Bishop
Fredrik Waldemar Hvoslef. The architect Georg Andreas Bull made the designs. Davik church is the main church for Davik sokn (sub-parish) in the parish of Davik.
was installed in the gallery in 1933, the church could seat 700 people. Davik church is thus one of the biggest in the county. The chancel
and the nave
are partitioned only by a low balustrade
, and have the same width as the porch
. The square chancel has permanent benches along the side walls. The pew
seats are painted blue, and otherwise oak-coloured with individual numbers for the various farms and families. The slanted ceiling in the nave and chancel are painted white, but towards the side walls of the nave, the ceiling is lowered and flat. The church room has columns supporting the gallery as well as functioning as roof supports to the sides. Along the walls there are five pointed-arch windows on either side, with green and red top sections. The altar rail
is oval with a white-painted balustrade, similar to the low chancel partition. The usual vestries
are located behind the chancel. On the western wall is the spacious porch with stairways on either side leading up to the gallery. In the corners of the porch there are small rooms with toilet facilities.
The steeple
is placed on the roof ridge itself. The turret
base is square, the steeple is octagonal and the spire
is covered with copper
. The impression of an unusually big and fine church is strengthened precisely because of its wide west wall and the pure, elegant lines in the architecture
.
Davik
Davik is a village and former municipality in the traditional district of Nordfjord in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The former municipality of Davik was located in parts of the present-day municipalities of Vågsøy, Bremanger, and Eid. The administrative center of the former municipality was...
in the municipality of Bremanger
Bremanger
Bremanger is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. Bremanger is the only municipality in Sogn og Fjordane, which is located in two districts. The north-eastern parts comprising Oldeide, Berle, Rugsund, Davik, Isane and Ålfoten is located in Nordfjord, while Bremanger, Kalvåg,...
, Sogn og Fjordane
Sogn og Fjordane
is a county in Norway, bordering Møre og Romsdal, Oppland, Buskerud, and Hordaland. The county administration is in the town of Hermansverk in Leikanger municipality while the largest town is Førde....
county, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. The church is a part of the Davik prestegjeld
Prestegjeld
A Prestegjeld is a geographic and administrative area of the Church of Norway roughly equivalent to a parish. A prestegjeld can consist of one or many congregations...
in the Nordfjord deanery of the Diocese of Bjørgvin
Diocese of Bjørgvin
Bjørgvin Diocese is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers churches located in the counties of Hordaland and Sogn og Fjordane. The cathedral city is Bergen. Bergen Cathedral, formerly the Church of Saint Olaf, serves as the seat of the presiding Bishop...
.
The church, with a seating capacity of 500, was consecrated on 6 July 1886 by the Bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
Fredrik Waldemar Hvoslef. The architect Georg Andreas Bull made the designs. Davik church is the main church for Davik sokn (sub-parish) in the parish of Davik.
Building
The church itself is not particularly long, but it is unusually wide. Before the pipe organPipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
was installed in the gallery in 1933, the church could seat 700 people. Davik church is thus one of the biggest in the county. The chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
and the nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
are partitioned only by a low balustrade
Baluster
A baluster is a moulded shaft, square or of lathe-turned form, one of various forms of spindle in woodwork, made of stone or wood and sometimes of metal, standing on a unifying footing, and supporting the coping of a parapet or the handrail of a staircase. Multiplied in this way, they form a...
, and have the same width as the porch
Vestibule (architecture)
A vestibule is a lobby, entrance hall, or passage between the entrance and the interior of a building.The same term can apply to structures in modern or ancient roman architecture. In modern architecture vestibule typically refers to a small room or hall between an entrance and the interior of...
. The square chancel has permanent benches along the side walls. The pew
Pew
A pew is a long bench seat or enclosed box used for seating members of a congregation or choir in a church, or sometimes in a courtroom.-Overview:Churches were not commonly furnished with permanent pews before the Protestant Reformation...
seats are painted blue, and otherwise oak-coloured with individual numbers for the various farms and families. The slanted ceiling in the nave and chancel are painted white, but towards the side walls of the nave, the ceiling is lowered and flat. The church room has columns supporting the gallery as well as functioning as roof supports to the sides. Along the walls there are five pointed-arch windows on either side, with green and red top sections. The altar rail
Altar rails
Altar rails are a set of railings, sometimes ornate and frequently of marble or wood, delimiting the chancel in a church, the part of the sanctuary that contains the altar. A gate at the centre divides the line into two parts. The sanctuary is a figure of heaven, into which entry is not guaranteed...
is oval with a white-painted balustrade, similar to the low chancel partition. The usual vestries
Vestry
A vestry is a room in or attached to a church or synagogue in which the vestments, vessels, records, etc., are kept , and in which the clergy and choir robe or don their vestments for divine service....
are located behind the chancel. On the western wall is the spacious porch with stairways on either side leading up to the gallery. In the corners of the porch there are small rooms with toilet facilities.
The steeple
Steeple (architecture)
A steeple, in architecture, is a tall tower on a building, often topped by a spire. Steeples are very common on Christian churches and cathedrals and the use of the term generally connotes a religious structure...
is placed on the roof ridge itself. The turret
Turret
In architecture, a turret is a small tower that projects vertically from the wall of a building such as a medieval castle. Turrets were used to provide a projecting defensive position allowing covering fire to the adjacent wall in the days of military fortification...
base is square, the steeple is octagonal and the spire
Spire
A spire is a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building, particularly a church tower. Etymologically, the word is derived from the Old English word spir, meaning a sprout, shoot, or stalk of grass....
is covered with copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
. The impression of an unusually big and fine church is strengthened precisely because of its wide west wall and the pure, elegant lines in the architecture
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
.