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Show Viking Vildng Dragons Still Decorate DecorateNorway's DecorateNorway's DecorateNorways Norway's Norways ' Old Wooden Churches OSLODragons OSLO -Dragons Dragons - Dragons still flaunt the thesky thesky thesky sky from Christian Chnstlan churches not notIn notin notin In China or the Orient but in Nor Norway Norway Norway way land of the midnight mldmght sunCarved sunCarved sun sunCarved Carved centuries ago when Chris Chrisban Christian Chnstian ban tian ty was young in m that land drag dragon dragon dragon on heads even today leap from the thegable thegable thegable gable ends of the famous stavklr stavkir stavklrker stavkirker stavkirker ker or wooden churches and now nowform nowform nowform form one of the few rema ning nmg 1 nks nksbetween nksbetween nksbetween between modern Norway and her herromant herromant herromant romant c V king kmg pastIt pastIt past pastIt It is a cunou-i cunou i cunOU1 curiou - t tale talc is the tale of ofthe ofthe ofthe the stavkirkcr stavklrkcr stavkirker and their thLlr thur dragons dragonsFor dragonsFor dragonsFor For centuries the thl ' dragon was one of ofthe ofthe ofthe the favorite fa\onte fa onte faorate \ % emblems of pagan Nor Norway Norway Norway way especially as os a figurehead for forthe forthe forthe the prows of her sturdy Vllnng Viking Vllnngsh Vikingsh Vikingsh sh ps and the men who bu It the thesh thesh thesh sh ps and decorated them with drag dragon dragon dragon on heads also built the nat on s first firstchurches firstchurches firstchurches churches The churc chure l I n structure al allowmg allowing allowing lowmg lowing them more exercise of imagination Imag Imagmatlon imagination matlon ination Viking Vlkmg carpenters not only onlyut onlyput 1 > 1ut _ ? ut dragons on the gables but also alsocarved alsocarved alsocarved carved those emblems into mto the col columns columns columns umns the capitals and even the thedoor thedoor thedoor door frames of the build ngsAbout ngsAbout ngs ngsAbout About 20 stavkirker stavkJrkel " may still stllI be beseen beseen beseen seen m in Norway states Peter PeterBerge PeterBerge PeterBerge Berge general manager of the Nor NorWeglan Norwegian Norwegian Weglan wegian America line lme Mr Berge be bel1ev believes believas l1ev lieves s that the sta stavk stavlc vk rker rlter ricer are bolli both bollicurious bothcurious bothcurious curious s ghts tor for travelers and also alsoapt alsoapt alsoapt apt illustrations of boat bu Iding ldmg lding for ( or yachtsmen localityThose who visit the locality Those who study the churches he hesays hesays hesays says will find in them the same bUIld samebuild ng principles prmclples used m In the fa farnous famous famous rnous mous shipspreserved 1 000 year old Viking Vlkmg shIps preserved in Oslo The word stav stay stavItself stayitself stavitself Itself was an early one tor for mast mastplanks mastplanks mastplanks planks in 1D the churches were locked Vikingvessels togplher together lockedtogether lockedtogplher as they were on 011 VIking vessels and ' "knees knees 'knees " ' were used to tostrengthen tostrengthen tostrengthen strengthen the structuresNorway structuresNorway structures structuresNorway Norway s largest stav stay church the H theH tterdal has windows wmdows but those thosewere thosewere thosewere were added the in m Nineteenth cen tury-a tury a century centurya - a aery t \ \ery ery ery late after afterthought thought In deed indeed The bu Id ngs originally h.d hd hid h.dno hidno mdno . no natural 1 I ghtmg ghting at all all , . , the priests and priestsand the thl ' choir depending dependmg on candles and candlesand kneelingFantoft lmeelmgFantoft the church goers kneeling lmeelmg Fantoft church one of the most famous mostfamous stavkirker stavklrker is only about s x xmiles x1T1lles 1T1lles miles from Bergcn Bergen the gateway to tothe the fjord country Fantoft once stood at stoodat the end of the Sognefjord but was brought wasbrought to its present location in 1848 in1848 The best preserved stav stay 11848 church stavchurch staychurch Laerdalin is the Borgw Borgund d near Laerdal themost In the fjord district dlstnct Two of the most accessible are the Gol and the theGarmo Garmo churches both now museum p museump eces The Gol today is a great feature greatfeature of the Norsk museum at atOslo Oslo while the Garmo church is a collections h ah ghlight ghhght of the famous Sandvie Sandvig col lections at LiUchammer Lillehammer Lillchammer |