History
The first reference to the church is in 1327. The original church was a much smaller single nave church built second half of 12th century. The west entrance remains from the original church. The front portal is one of the oldest, most richly ornamented and among the most beautiful in the whole country. It takes the form of three winged dragons, one on each side of the arch and pilasters of the entrance and one above, all elaborately intertwined in a tendril and leaf pattern.
The remodelling and expansion of original building into a cruciform church is believed to have been completed in 1699, although some sources claim 1738. Restoration work was done during 1902 under direction of Carl Berner. During the restoration work, the previous sacristy was replaced with a new choir, and the new parts were enclosed in an ambulatory. This was a small reconstruction to add a new ridge turret (Norwegian:takrytter).
Read more about this topic: Hedal Stave Church
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