Austevoll Church


Austevoll Church is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Austevoll Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Storebø. It is one of the five churches for the Austevoll parish which is part of the Fana prosti in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The white, wooden church was built in a long church style in 1890 using designs by the architect Hans Heinrich Jess. The church seats about 400 people.

History

The first Austevoll Church was a stave church built during the middle ages on the small island of Sandtorv. Historical records do not refer to the church in the 1300s, but it may have been in existence then. In the 1650s, the Sandtorv church was old and so it was torn down and moved to Austevollshella on the island of Hundvåko. According to a local legend, the new church was to be built on the old site, but a storm carried the material over to the site on Austevollshella. Taken as a sign from God, the new church was built there. The church at Austevollshella was in use for over 200 years, giving name to the parish of Austevoll, which in turn gave name to the municipality in 1886.
The church building was owned by the Church of Norway until 1724 when it was sold to Bent Uldrich for 70 rigsdaler. The church was purchased by the people of the parish around the year 1860. In 1891, the church was torn down and the present church was rebuilt on the nearby island of Huftarøy in the village of Storebø. This new church was consecrated on 22 January 1891 by the Bishop Waldemar Hvoslef.
The present Hundvåkøy Chapel now sits on the site at Austevollshella where the old Austevoll Church was located from the 1650s until 1891. Some items from the medieval Sandtorv church, including the shrine, are still in existence to this day and they are currently in custody of the Bergen Museum.