Mæl Church ( no, Mæl kirke) is a parish church of the

Church of Norway The Church of Norway ( nb, Den norske kirke, nn, Den norske kyrkja, se, Norgga girku, sma, Nöörjen gærhkoe) is an evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. The church b ...

Tinn Municipality Tinn is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Telemark in the Counties of Norway, county of Vestfold og Telemark in Norway. It is part of the Districts of Norway, traditional regions of Upper Telemark and Øst-Telemark. The administrative c ...

in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the village of

Miland Miland is a village in Tinn Municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. The village is located in the Vestfjorddalen valley, near the western shore of the large lake Tinnsjå, about east of the town of Rjukan, about south of the villa ...

. It is one of the churches for the Tinn parish which is part of the

Øvre Telemark prosti This list of churches in Agder og Telemark is a list of the Church of Norway churches in the Diocese of Agder og Telemark in Agder and Vestfold og Telemark counties in southern Norway. The diocese is based at the Kristiansand Cathedral in the cit ...

(

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residenc ...

) in the

Diocese of Agder og Telemark The Diocese of Agder og Telemark ( no, Agder og Telemark bispedømme) is a diocese of the Church of Norway, covering all of Agder county and most of Vestfold og Telemark county in Norway. The cathedral city is Kristiansand, Norway's fifth larges ...

. The white, wooden church was built in a

long church Church building in Norway began when Christianity was established there around the year 1000. The first buildings may have been post churches erected in the 10th or 11th century, but the evidence is inconclusive. For instance under Urnes Stave C ...

design in 1839 using plans drawn up by the architect

Hans Linstow Hans Ditlev Franciscus (Frants) von Linstow (4 May 1787 – 10 June 1851) was a Danish/Norwegian architect who designed the Royal Palace in Oslo and much of the surrounding park and the street ''Karl Johans gate''. Background Hans Ditlev Franc ...

. The church seats about 120 people.

History

The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1358, but the church was not built that year. The first Mæl Church was a wooden stave church that was likely built during the 12th century. By the early 19th century, the old stave church had fallen into disrepair and it was decided to replace the old church. A new church was built immediately north of the old church by master builder Gunleik Ingolfsland who based it off drawings by the architect

. The church was

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

on 25 August 1839 after three years of construction. After the new church was put into use, the old stave church was demolished. Mæl church is a snall, wooden

. In 1916-1918, the church porch was rebuilt, a

sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is usually located ...

was added, and the church redecorated. Also there was a major restoration in 1973-1974 according to plans by Stephan Tschudi-Madsen, the interior colors were returned to the original.

Media gallery

Vestfjorddalen. Mæl kirke - NB MS G4 0843 (cropped).jpg, View c. 1895 Mæl kirke, Tinn - no-nb digifoto 20151127 00177 NB MIT FNR 14060.jpg, View in 1954

References

{{use dmy dates, date=December 2022 Tinn Churches in Vestfold og Telemark Long churches in Norway Wooden churches in Norway 19th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1839 12th-century establishments in Norway

History

Media gallery

See also

References