Hedareds stavkyrka
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A brief account
Hedared stave church or Hedared chapel, as it is also called, is the only surviving medieval stave church in Sweden. The outstanding feature of a stave church is its construction of upright cloven logs or planks, which, in the oldest churches were dug into the ground. It is a genuinely Nordic type of church buildning, which was mainly used in Sweden and Norway at the time when christianity was introduced. They were successors to pre-christian cult temples and places of worship with the same architecture. Even in Denmark and on Iceland there used to be a few stave churches, which no more exist. Here, as in Norway, the stave churches were probably often richly furnished with ornamentation, galleries and different rooflevels.
Hedared stave church was no doubt one of the plainer churches. It was earlier presumed that the church was built sometime between the 12th and 14th centuries, but an age determination based on annual ringdating (a dendrochronological examination) has now shown that the church was erected about the year of 1500. In all probability a church of the same type had existed in the same place before that. This can be concluded from a part of the building dating from the 12th century enclosed in the present church.
From the beginning the church only consisted of walls, a roof and had a floor of trampled earth. All the fixtures, i.e. Wooden floor, pews, gallery, pulpit abd ceiling have been added later, and the roof has been rebuilt. Originally there were no windows. The present windows were put in 1781. Before the exterior restoration in 1901 led by E.Ekhoff, custodian of national monuments, the church was covered with boards and had a porch. The panelling protected the exterior of the church and judging from the width of the windowframes it had probably been put up in connection with the windows in the 18th century at the latest. The churchporch, which according to preserved photographs fitted in beautifully with the church and sheltered the entrance, had also been added to the original building. The panelling was removed and the porch was demolished in order to restore the church as far as possible to its original state. According to reports the gallery was also supposed to have benn pulled down, but this was stopped by the villagers. At the restoration in 1901 the roof, consisting af hand-cloven pine heart wood, was remade. The wall planks are mainly of oak.
During an interior restoration in 1934-1935 an altar piece, portraying the coronation of the virgin Mary was discovered. This had been painted on the outer wall. When the church had been painted in 1735 the chancel had been panelled on the inside and the old altarpiece had been covered. After the discovery the boards were fixed on hinges. The 18th century painting reproduces Moses and Aaron on each side of the image of Christ. On the left chancel wall you can see Jesus in Getsemane, on the right wall the interment and on the ceiling of the chancel the baptism of Jesus. The painting on the nave ceiling shows us the resurrection of Jesus with the four evangelists in the corner medallions. The front of the gallery and the pulpit are decorated with pictures of the apostles.
Old medieval furnishings are still kept in the church. Foremost is the beautiful madonna adorning the reconstructed side altar. It dates from the 13th to 14th centuries and has problaby been made by a foreign master. The church may have had another side altar decorated by the Franciscus wooden sculpture, which is now placed beside the pulpit. A French processioncross from the 12th century ornaments the altar and the censer in the chancel arch reminds us of the Catholic mass. A communion-cup of goldplated silver from the 13th century is still used as well as the medieval baptismal font.
Under a sheet of glass on the altar there is a well preserved cloth of medieval conventual workmanship with a dragon motif in netting with bobbin-lace. A remarkable thing is the little stone of green-coloured diabase porphyry set in a piece of wood, which was found during the restoration in 1901 hidden under a board beneath the pulpit. The intense wear of the piece of wood indicates that it has probably been used as a portable altar or field altar.
Two beautifully carved medieval procession staffs also belong to the church,
as well as a beadle, a Charles XII bible with Jesper Swedberg's dedication and
signature, a wax candle, possibly medieval, and a collection bag with a
bell made in 1772. The red antipendium most likely dates from the same period
as well as the mass vestments in black with gold braids.
Furthermore a letter of indulgence, issued by Bishop Vincentius of Skara in
1506, belongs to the church. According to this, a person who visited the church
at Hedared in order to perform mass or have mass performed, donated something
for the maintenance of the church or performed any other devotional exercise
mentioned in the letter etc, was granted remission of penance imposed.
The letter of indulgence, the communioncup, the mass vestments and the wax candle
are not kept in the church.
The church bell was refounded in 1814 and the age of the previous bell is unknown. The belltower was originally open, but as early as the 19th century it was covered with panelling, which did not, however, get its present shape until the 20th century.
In the 1840's, when Hedared and the neighbouring parish of Sandhult were ordered to build a joint church at Sandhult, the church at Hedared was considered so defective that, according to a royal letter of 1830, it was not to be kept in repair any longer. At the same time as the Hedared villagers took part in the building and maintenance of the new church at Sandhult, they went on and still go on maintaining their old church. The villagers fully paid for the restoration in 1901 by supplying timber and labour. The restoraion in 1935 with the installation of new joisting, a new floor beneath the old one, electric heating, renovation of the paintings etc. was financed through a subscription of private means. Nowadays maintenance is kept up through admission-fees paid by tourists.
At the time of the union with Sandhult the villagers of Hedared secured that the churchyard at Hedared could still be used. Thus the villagers had every reason for their refusal to hand over the church bell to the new church.
Since the restoration in 19343-35, when the church was reconsecrated for the holding of divine services, such are held regularly throughout the year.
When, in the 1840's, the villagers went on mentaining the church despite the decree of the authorities, they micht have been hoping to be allowed to congregate again one day for service in this venerable temple. Thereby - perhaps unawares - they handed down an irreplaceable ancient cultural monument to posterity.
tillbaka till Hedareds stavkyrka