Ringebu Stave Church

In the 1630s, the church was remodelled by master builder Werner Olsen. It was extended eastwards with new transepts, a new chancel and a sacristy. The tower and spire were added at the same time. The surrounding covered gallery and apse were removed, and the interior ceiling was lowered. During the restoration completed in 1921, the ceiling over the nave was removed and the eighteenth-century wall decorations were restored. In the Middle Ages, the church had two portals. The western portal retains its original carved side panels with animal ornamentation, while remnants of the southern portal survive beneath the wall cladding. The interior largely retains the colours and furnishings of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. The altarpiece dates from the 1680s and is one of the earliest examples of carved acanthus foliage in Gudbrandsdalen. The carvings on the pulpit and the monogram of King Frederick IV above the chancel screen were probably carved by Lars Jensen Borg around 1700. Some medieval furnishings also survive, including a large and a smaller crucifix from the first half of the fourteenth century. A medieval sculpture of St Lawrence, dating from the mid-thirteenth century, stands at the chancel screen. Archaeological excavations beneath the church in 1980–81 uncovered around 900 coins, along with other finds. Some are displayed at Ringebu Rectory. Most of the coins date from the Middle Ages. The excavations also revealed postholes from an earlier church that stood on the site in the twelfth century. The soapstone baptismal font from this earlier post church survives and is still inside the stave church.