DOI issue:
No. 56 (November, 1897)
DOI article:Allen, John Romilly: Early scandinavian wood-carvings, [2]
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.18390#0111
Early Scandinavian Wood-Carvings
wooden churches is concentrated almost exclusively
on the dragonesque finials of the roof gables, the
air-apertures pierced in the little turret or fleche on
the top of the roof of the nave and the doorways,
- ■_. although an exceptional case occurs at Urnas, on the
J* Sogne Fjord, where the vertical planks which form
5* V the exterior walls of the building, and the round
*'Cjk.*Y corner posts are most elaborately decorated with
v .S dragonesque beasts in the style of those on the
^j^m^i Danish Rune-inscribed head-stone found in St.
< > *>vl Paul's Churchyard, and now in the Guildhall
• ' Library. The church of Urnas is probably one of
sy": the oldest in Norway, as the dragonesque beasts
belong to the art of the monuments of the eleventh
0 J-*, ^ century inscribed in later Runes, and are quite
; different from the true mediaeval dragon. The frag-
p(f ment shown on Fig. 10, from Torpe Church, Hal-
w« $ -t * lingdal, is in this style.
%*(*b Most of the finely carved doorways of the
% * . wooden churches in Norway belong to the end of
- i -v. V the twelfth or the beginning of the thirteenth
' ^""V \ century, and although some may perhaps be a little
^^ A earlier and others a little later, yet the general
• * > ; \ i luiiacter of all is the same, the art motives being
p S evidently derived from Christian-Byzantine sources,
•> \ * v %. with here and there an admixture of ideas of pagan
origin which died hard even though the ban of the
A' * *.\ ' ^ Church was upon them.
Notwithstanding the large number of carved
lto-^<ri>%\v i V jf- ,
\ s. ' d-/' ^ doorways of this period still in existence, very few
a s^/.v, si i\«/f j of the doors seem to have escaped destruction.
^ a • The original door of Urnas Church is one of those
^-fc*Vf> .' *> i w that have survived. It is completely covered with
FIG. 4.—CARVED DOORWAY FROM TUFT CHURCH,
BUSKERUDS, AMT
f vT 7 *dragonesque beasts of the same kind as on the
U- ^ jambs of the doorway. A very fine specimen of a
door made of plain boards, but with all its iron
work complete, is to be seen at Hedal Church, at
the northern end of Lake Spirillen, sixty miles or
so north-west of Christiania. The ironwork is very
elaborate, with pierced lock-plates ornamented
with figure-subjects.
A beautifully carved door from Valthiofstad
At Gol Church, in Hallingdal, about 100 miles Church, Nordmulasysla, in the east of Iceland, is
north-east of Christiania, some very curious gro- preserved in the Copenhagen Museum, and a cast
tesque human heads are to be seen at the top of the of it is available for English students in the South
triangular timbers at the points from which the roof Kensington Museum (see Fig. 1). The carved
principals spring. portions are enclosed within two large circular
The bench-ends and chairs found in many of medallions, the upper one containing a legendary
the churches in Norway are also carved, but they figure-subject, and the lower one four dragons
may be considered rather as the furniture than as placed symmetrically with their bodies, wings and
forming part of the fixed structure. The chairs limbs interlaced in a very ingenious manner. In
have already been described, and we shall refer to the centre of the door is an iron ring-shaped handle,
the bench-ends subsequently. The door is 6 ft. 9J in. high by 3 ft. 2J in. wide.
The carving on the exteriors of the Norwegian In the middle of the present century the door
85
wooden churches is concentrated almost exclusively
on the dragonesque finials of the roof gables, the
air-apertures pierced in the little turret or fleche on
the top of the roof of the nave and the doorways,
- ■_. although an exceptional case occurs at Urnas, on the
J* Sogne Fjord, where the vertical planks which form
5* V the exterior walls of the building, and the round
*'Cjk.*Y corner posts are most elaborately decorated with
v .S dragonesque beasts in the style of those on the
^j^m^i Danish Rune-inscribed head-stone found in St.
< > *>vl Paul's Churchyard, and now in the Guildhall
• ' Library. The church of Urnas is probably one of
sy": the oldest in Norway, as the dragonesque beasts
belong to the art of the monuments of the eleventh
0 J-*, ^ century inscribed in later Runes, and are quite
; different from the true mediaeval dragon. The frag-
p(f ment shown on Fig. 10, from Torpe Church, Hal-
w« $ -t * lingdal, is in this style.
%*(*b Most of the finely carved doorways of the
% * . wooden churches in Norway belong to the end of
- i -v. V the twelfth or the beginning of the thirteenth
' ^""V \ century, and although some may perhaps be a little
^^ A earlier and others a little later, yet the general
• * > ; \ i luiiacter of all is the same, the art motives being
p S evidently derived from Christian-Byzantine sources,
•> \ * v %. with here and there an admixture of ideas of pagan
origin which died hard even though the ban of the
A' * *.\ ' ^ Church was upon them.
Notwithstanding the large number of carved
lto-^<ri>%\v i V jf- ,
\ s. ' d-/' ^ doorways of this period still in existence, very few
a s^/.v, si i\«/f j of the doors seem to have escaped destruction.
^ a • The original door of Urnas Church is one of those
^-fc*Vf> .' *> i w that have survived. It is completely covered with
FIG. 4.—CARVED DOORWAY FROM TUFT CHURCH,
BUSKERUDS, AMT
f vT 7 *dragonesque beasts of the same kind as on the
U- ^ jambs of the doorway. A very fine specimen of a
door made of plain boards, but with all its iron
work complete, is to be seen at Hedal Church, at
the northern end of Lake Spirillen, sixty miles or
so north-west of Christiania. The ironwork is very
elaborate, with pierced lock-plates ornamented
with figure-subjects.
A beautifully carved door from Valthiofstad
At Gol Church, in Hallingdal, about 100 miles Church, Nordmulasysla, in the east of Iceland, is
north-east of Christiania, some very curious gro- preserved in the Copenhagen Museum, and a cast
tesque human heads are to be seen at the top of the of it is available for English students in the South
triangular timbers at the points from which the roof Kensington Museum (see Fig. 1). The carved
principals spring. portions are enclosed within two large circular
The bench-ends and chairs found in many of medallions, the upper one containing a legendary
the churches in Norway are also carved, but they figure-subject, and the lower one four dragons
may be considered rather as the furniture than as placed symmetrically with their bodies, wings and
forming part of the fixed structure. The chairs limbs interlaced in a very ingenious manner. In
have already been described, and we shall refer to the centre of the door is an iron ring-shaped handle,
the bench-ends subsequently. The door is 6 ft. 9J in. high by 3 ft. 2J in. wide.
The carving on the exteriors of the Norwegian In the middle of the present century the door
85