| Stamnes Church | |
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| Stamnes kyrkje | |
 View of the church | |
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| 60°39′51″N5°44′59″E / 60.66419251217°N 5.74971145388°E /60.66419251217; 5.74971145388 | |
| Location | Vaksdal,Vestland |
| Country | Norway |
| Denomination | Church of Norway |
| Previous denomination | Catholic Church |
| Churchmanship | Evangelical Lutheran |
| History | |
| Status | Parish church |
| Founded | 13th century |
| Consecrated | 20 Oct 1861 |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Architect(s) | Peter Høier Holtermann |
| Architectural type | Long church |
| Completed | 1861 (164 years ago) (1861) |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 250 |
| Materials | Wood |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Bjørgvin bispedømme |
| Deanery | Hardanger og Voss prosti |
| Parish | Stamnes |
| Type | Church |
| Status | Not protected |
| ID | 85543 |
Stamnes Church (Norwegian:Stamnes kyrkje) is aparish church of theChurch of Norway inVaksdal Municipality inVestland county,Norway. It is located in the village ofStamneshella. It is the church for the Stamnesparish which is part of theHardanger og Voss prosti (deanery) in theDiocese of Bjørgvin. The white, wooden church was built in along church design in 1861 using plans drawn up by thearchitectsPeter Høier Holtermann andJacob Wilhelm Nordan. The church seats about 250 people.[1][2]
The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1328, but the church was not new that year. The first church in Stamnes was a woodenstave church that was likely built during the 13th century. Very little is known about this church. The church is said to have received a newpulpit in 1582 and chairs around 1590. During the first part of the 1600s, the oldstave church was torn down and replaced with atimber-framedlong church. In 1687–1689, a new choir had been built for the church, and a total of six new windows had been installed in the choir and nave. According to records, this church had anave that measured about 11.3 by 7 metres (37 ft × 23 ft) and thechoir on the east end of the nave measured about 5 by 5.6 metres (16 ft × 18 ft).[3][4][5]
In 1814, this church served as anelection church (Norwegian:valgkirke).[6][7] Together with more than 300 other parish churches across Norway, it was a polling station for elections to the 1814Norwegian Constituent Assembly which wrote theConstitution of Norway. This was Norway's first national elections. Eachchurch parish was a constituency that elected people called "electors" who later met together in each county to elect the representatives for the assembly that was to meet inEidsvoll later that year.[6][8]
By the mid-1800s, the church was too small for the population, and it needed to be enlarged or replaced. In 1861, the old church was torn down and replaced with a present church building. The new building was designed byPeter Høier Holtermann and the architect for theMinistry of Church Affairs,Jacob Wilhelm Nordan, modified the tower before the plans were approved. Nils Mjøs was the construction manager for the project. The new building wasconsecrated on 20 October 1861. In the 1950s, the church received electric lighting and heating. In 1961, an addition was built just east of the choir containing asacristy, bathroom, and meeting room.[9][4][5]
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