Thingvellir Church, Iceland
by Catherine Sherman
Title
Thingvellir Church, Iceland
Artist
Catherine Sherman
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
"Thingvellir Church, Iceland" by Catherine Sherman.
Thingvellir Church stands on the site of a church building dating to the 11th century at the time of the conversion of Iceland to Christianity. The first building was built at the initiative of Norwegian King Olaf I, who sent beams and a bell, materials that were rare or absent in Iceland at the time. The current church building was consecrated in 1859, and in 1907 the spire was rebuilt and altered.
Beyond is a long ridge of rock, part of the crest of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the boundary between the North American tectonic plate and the Eurasian. You can see people walking along the top of this ridge. Thingvellir is a site of historical, cultural, and geological significance, and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Iceland, about 40 km northeast of Iceland's capital, Reykjavík. Thingvellir is the National Park where the Althing, an open-air assembly representing the whole of Iceland, was established in 930 and continued to meet until 1798. Thingvellir means "Parliament Plains," and Thingvallakirkja means church of the Parliament Plains.
There are three bells in the spire, one of them ancient, another donated by bishop Jón Vídalín when he was ordained in 1698, and a third that was made to "ring in" independence in 1944. Thingvellir was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004, reference number 1152.
Featured in "UNESCO World Heritage Sites" group (10/11/2017); "Churches" group (11/04/2019); "500 Views - 1 Image a Day" group (01/25/2020)
Uploaded
September 26th, 2017
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Viewed 916 Times - Last Visitor from Sunman, IN on 04/14/2024 at 3:29 PM
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