Nes church ruins

Nes church ruins are the remains of a medieval church in Nes municipality on Romerike, in Norway's Akershus region. They sit on a headland where two major rivers, the Glomma and the Vorma, come together, and count among the more atmospheric historic sites near Årnes.

What is this place?

The church once stood on land belonging to the Disen farm. Local history sources say it was built where a pre-Christian sacrificial site appears to have been. Reusing older sacred places was common in Scandinavia, and it hints at how long this headland mattered to people living nearby.

What did the church look like?

The first building, a stone nave church from around 1100, was long with a narrow nave. Traces of an apse, the rounded east end, can still be made out in the ground. In the 16th century the church burned during the Northern Seven Years' War, and in 1697 it was rebuilt as a cruciform church. That plan is the one preserved in the walls visitors see today.

Why is it a ruin?

In 1854 the church caught fire after a lightning strike. The ground at the river confluence is clay, so it was judged safer to put a new church farther from the water. The new Nes church was completed in 1860, and some furnishings from the old one were saved and moved there.

What can you see and do here?

Today the ruins work as an outdoor exhibition on the history of the area. It is a good stop for a quiet walk, river views and the feel of a place where several eras are layered together. The site is also used for events: more and more people choose it for open-air services, concerts and weddings.

Frequently asked questions

Where are the Nes church ruins? In Nes municipality, Akershus, on the headland at the meeting of the Glomma and Vorma rivers. The municipal centre is the village of Årnes.

How old is the church? The original stone church dates from around 1100. The ruins' present form reflects the 1697 rebuilding as a cruciform church.

Why did the church stop being used? After a lightning fire in 1854, a new church was built in a safer spot away from the clay ground by the rivers.

Are events held at the ruins? Yes. Services, concerts and weddings take place here, and the site doubles as an open-air history exhibition.

Is this the same as Nes Church in Ringsaker? No. A different church with a similar name stands in Tingnes in Ringsaker municipality; these ruins are in Akershus.