Bibliography

Introduction
The problem of the genesis of the Norwegian wooden churches has been debated for more than 160 years. The painter I. C. Dahl (1788-1857) saw the churches as relicts of an advanced medieval wood building tradition which was soon disappearing. He asked the architect Franz W. Schiertz (1815-1887) to survey Borgund, Heddal and Urnes churches for his book on the stave buildings, to support a general interest in preserving them for the future. This initiative contributed to the establishing of Fortidsminneforeningen in the year 1844. From that time on, the most important documentation and research on the churches has been published in their annual.

In the first thorough investigation of the Norwegian medieval wooden churches, Lorentz Dietrichson in his book from 1892 recognised the unique status of the buildings. His idea was that the buildings for the major part were a genial transformation of forms from European stone churches into wood. Many researchers have tried to connect visual form to similar forms in churches elsewhere, by tracing wooden forms back to a supposed stone origin. The questions asked are whether the churches were inspired by foreign ecclesiastical buildings, if the were copied from vernacular Norwegian houses, or something in between. Riksantikvaren, the Central Office of Historic Monuments and Sites, was established in 1912. Many of the researchers specializing in wooden church architecture were employed here. In general, the descriptions of the buildings and the understanding of the development of the history of architecture have been following that of Dietrichson. After 1950, however, building archaeology, excavations outside and inside buildings, extended documentation and dendrochronology have given new knowledge on topography, planning, design, technology, construction, decoration, artifacts and inventory. As churches elsewhere, the Norwegian wooden churches are the result of a complicated vernacular and international tradition. So far, no complete description is made of any of the churches. The books mentioned here will give the reader important fragments of the history of the medieval wooden churches.

Medieval Wooden Churches in Northern Europe, Especially in Norway

• 2005 Anker, Leif og Jiri Havran: The Norwegian Stave Churches. ARFO. Oslo. 357 s. ISBN 82-91399-29-8
• 2004 Kristjánsdóttir, Steinunn: The Awakening of Christianity in Iceland. Discoveries of a Timber Church and Graveyard at Þórarinsstaðir in Seyðisfjörður. PhD Thesis. GOTARC, Gothenburg Archaeological Thesis, Series B No 31. Göteborg.
• 2003 Egenberg, Inger Marie: Tarring maintenance of Norwegian medieval stave churches. Characterisation of pine tar during kiln-production, experimental coating procedures and weathering. Doctoral dissertation. Göteborg Studies in Conservation 12, Göteborg.
• 2002 Storsletten, O.: Takene taler, Norske takstoler 1100-1350, klassifisering og opprinnelse. Con-Text, avhandling 10, Arkitekthøgskolen i Oslo.
• 2001 Ahrens, C.: Die frühen Holzkirchen Europas, B. I-II, Stuttgart.
• 2001 Jensenius, J.H.: Trekirkene før stavkirkene. En undersøkelse av planlegging og design av kirker før ca. år 1100. Con-Text, avhandling 6. Arkitekthøgskolen i Oslo.
• 2001 Solhaug, M. B.: Middelalderens døpefonter i Norge, vol. I-II, Acta humaniora; no. 89, (dr. philos.) Det historisk-filosofiske fakultet, Universitetet i Oslo.
• 2000 Anker, L.: Stokk eller stein?: Kirke, byggemåter og mulige byggherrer i indre Sogn om lag 1130-1350 belyst ved et utvalg kirker fra perioden. Hovedfagsoppgave i kunsthistorie. Universitetet i Oslo.
• 2000 Fernie, E.: The Architecture of the Norman England. Oxford.
• 1999 Hohler, E.B.: Norwegian Stave Church Sculpture. Vol. I-II, Oslo.
• 1999 Schjelderup, H. og O. Storsletten (red.): Grindbygde hus i Vest-Norge: NIKU-seminar om grindbygde hus. NIKU Temahefte 30. Oslo.
• 1989-1999 Berg, A.: Norske tømmerhus frå mellomalderen, vol. I-VI, Oslo.
• 1998 Zimmermann, W.H.: Pfosten, Ständer und Schwelle und der Übergang vom Pfosten- zum Ständerbau – Eine Studie zu Innovation und Beharrung im Hausbau, Probleme der Küstenforschung im südlichen Nordseegebiet, vol. 25: 9-241.
• 1997 Anker, P. : Stavkirkene, deres egenart og historie, Oslo.
• 1996 Blair, J. and C. Pyrah (reds.): Church Archaeology, Research for the Future. CBA Research Report, no. 104. London.
• 1995 Christensen, A.L.: Den norske byggeskikken, hus og bolig på landsbygda fra middelalderen til vår egen tid. Oslo.
• 1994 Skov, H.: Hustyper i vikingetid og tidlig middelalder, Hikuin: 139-162.
• 1994 Weinmann, C.: Der Hausbau in Skandinavien vom Neolithikum bis zum Mittelalter. Berlin, New York.
• 1993 Berg, A. (med fl. red.): Kirkearkeologi og kirkekunst: Studier tilegnet Sigrid og Håkon Christie. Øvre Ervik.
• 1990 Qvale, Wencke: Lorentz Dietrichsons verk om “De norske stavkirker” og dets plass i norsk stavkirkeforskning. En analyse av en forskningstradisjon. Avhandling for magistergraden i kunsthistorie, Universitetet i Bergen. Mangfoldiggjort.
• 1983 Murray, H.: Viking and Early Medieval Buildings in Dublin, BAR, British Series, vol. 19. London.
• 1983 Ólafsson, G. (red.): Hus, gård og bebyggelse. Reykjavik.
• 1982 Ahrens, C.: Frühe Holzkirchen im nördlichen Europa. Hamburgisches Museum für Vor- und Frühgeschichte, Hamburg-Altona.
• 1982 Drury, P.J. (ed.): Structural Reconstruction. Approach to the Interpretation of the Excavated Remains of Buildings. BAR British Series, vol. 110. London.
• 1982 Fernie, E.: The Architecture of the Anglo-Saxons. London.
• 1982 Myhre, B. (m. fl. red.): Synspunkter på huskonstruksjoner i Sør-Vestnorske gårdshus fra jernalder og middelalder, AmS-skrifter, vol.7. Stavanger.
• 1981 Christie, H.: Stavkirkene - Arkitektur, Norges kunsthistorie, b. I-VII, Oslo: I, 139-252.
• 1981-1996 Christie, S. og H.: Norges kirker, Buskerud, b. I-III. Oslo.
• 1976 Hauglid, R.: Norske stavkirker. Bygningshistorisk bakgrunn og utvikling. Oslo.
• 1974 Christie, H.: Middelalderen bygger i tre, Oslo.
• 1973 Hauglid, R.: Norske stavkirker. Dekor og utstyr. Oslo.
• 1970 Anker, P. : The Stave Churches, in: The Art of Scandinavia, vol. I-II, London etc.: I, 200-452.
• 1966 Olsen, O.: Hørg, hov og kirke, Aarbøger for nordisk oldkyndighed og historie, 1965.
• 1956-1978 Kulturhistorisk leksikon for nordisk middelalder, København.
• 1914-16 Ekhoff, E.: Svenska stavkyrkor: Jämte iakttagelser över de norske samt redogörelse för i Danmark och England kända lämningar av stavkonstruktioner. Stockholm.
• 1892 Dietrichson, L.: De norske stavkirker, Kristiania.
• 1891 Bruun, Johan: Norges stavkyrkor. Ett bidrag till dän romanska arkitekturens historia. Akademisk avhandling (Filosofisk doktorgrad). Stockholm.
• 1845- Foreningen til norske fortidsminnesmerkers bevaring, årboken. Oslo.
• 1837 Dahl, I.C.: Denkmale einer sehr ausgebildeten Holzbaukunst aus den frühesten Jahrhunderten in den innern Landschaften Norwegens. Dresden.