Fana Church

Historie

Fana Church is a parish church in Bergen municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. It is located in Fanahammeren, a village in the borough of Fana in the city of Bergen. The church is part of the Fana parish in the Fana deanery in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.The existing stone building celebrated its 850-year anniversary in 2003, but the church building history is long and complicated. Historians assert that the church has been rebuilt and enlarged several times.Fana Church was mentioned in writings for the first time in 1228, when Pope Gregory IX released a conscription to the vicar and brothers at "the holy cross church and hospital in Fana". In the letter, it is mentioned that the bishops in Bergen had let the church be founded again: "de novo fundari". Parts of the existing church building are from the Romance époque, and the walls show signs of there having been a stone building at the site, most likely a church, before 1220. Due to this, it is believed that the core of the church was built in the second half of the 12th century.Legend of the holy silver crossThe legend "The Holy Silver Cross" is connected to Fana church. In 1626, King Christian IV of Denmark commissioned the University of Copenhagen to register all historical objects and occurrences in Bjørgvin bishopric. Skonvig, the son of a priest, sent a letter about the legend.