The Church Hill, Ruokolahti, Finland

The church hill of Ruokolahti is situated in a beautiful site just near the Lake Saimaa. The wooden church was completed in 1854. The bell tower is perhaps the most well known building in Ruokolahti and it is also one of the oldest ones. This shingle-roofed bell tower was built by a local carpenter, Tuomas Suikkanen, who completed it in 1752.

Opposite to the bell tower is the Ruokolahti Parish Museum. It was founded in 1955 in a public granary built in 1861. There are about 2000 objects in the three-story building.

A guided tour in the church hill takes about an hour. A guide can be engaged through the Ruokolahti Tourist Office.

Reference: Ruokolahti Municipality

Address

Ukonsalmentie, Ruokolahti, Finland

See all sites in Ruokolahti

Details

Founded: 1752-1861
Category: Religious sites in Finland
Historical period: The Age of Enlightenment (Finland)

More Information

www2.ruokolahti.fi

Rating

4.2/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby

Border Museum (5,7 km)
The Church of the Three Crosses (5,5 km)

Valtionhotelli (13,2 km)

User Reviews

Atro Juntunen (2 months ago)
Puinen kirkko.

krista bister (2 months ago)
Tunnelmallinen ja kaunis kirkko

Евгений Быченков (2 months ago)
Красивейшее место, сама церковь и пристройки + потрясающий вид. Жаль что приехал туда когда церковь была закрыта по этому про внутреннее убранство ничего сказать не могу

Ilkka Keränen (7 months ago)
Simo Häyhän haudalla vierailu. I salute...

Виктор Малышкин (7 months ago)
Попали сюда в первый раз и случайно. Поразила красота этих мест, чистота и добродушие местных жителей. Мы попали на какой-то праздник, не поняли... Но нас искренне пригласили в Кирху и мы увидели как там уютно и красиво. Услышали орган и пение хора.

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright Guido Rudolph

Historic Site of the week

Lübeck Cathedral

Lübeck Cathedral is a large brick-built Lutheran cathedral in Lübeck, Germany and part of the Lübeck UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 1173 Henry the Lion founded the cathedral to serve the Diocese of Lübeck, after the transfer in 1160 of the bishop's seat from Oldenburg in Holstein under bishop Gerold. The then Romanesque cathedral was completed around 1230, but between 1266 and 1335 it was converted into a Gothic-style building with side-aisles raised to the same height as the main aisle.

On the night of Palm Sunday (28–29 March) 1942 a Royal Air Force bombing raid destroyed a fifth of the town centre. Several bombs fell in the area around the church, causing the eastern vault of the quire to collapse and destroying the altar which dated from 1696. A fire from the neighbouring cathedral museum spread to the truss of the cathedral, and around noon on Palm Sunday the towers collapsed. An Arp Schnitger organ was lost in the flames. Nevertheless, a relatively large portion of the internal fittings was saved, including the cross and almost all of the medieval polyptychs. In 1946 a further collapse, of the gable of the north transept, destroyed the vestibule almost completely.

Reconstruction of the cathedral took several decades, as greater priority was given to the rebuilding of the Marienkirche. Work was completed only in 1982.

The cathedral is unique in that at 105 m, it is shorter than the tallest church in the city. This is the consequence of a power struggle between the church and the guilds.

The 17 m crucifix is the work of the Lübeck artist Bernt Notke. It was commissioned by the bishop of Lübeck, Albert II. Krummendiek, and erected in 1477. The carvings which decorate the rood screen are also by Notke.

Since the war, the famous altar of Hans Memling has been in the medieval collection of the St. Annen Museum, but notable polyptychs remain in the cathedral.

In the funeral chapels of the southern aisle are Baroque-era memorials by the Flemish sculptor Thomas Quellinus.

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The Church Hill