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The Arctic Cathedral In Tromsø

The Arctic Cathedral or the Tromsdalen Church is located in the Tromsø suburb of Tromsdalen. It's Norwegian name Ishavskatedralen is translated into The Arctic Cathedral but is referring to the Arctic Sea rather than the Arctic per se. The real Tromsø Cathedral on Storgata in Tromsø is a tourist attraction on its own, being the only wooden cathedral in Norway.

The Artctic Cathedral was inaugurated on November 19 1965, and has quickly become a main tourist attraction in Tromsø as well as a navigational aid for sea farers because of its distinctive shape and bright appearance.

The walls are 11 pieces of concrete covered with Aluminium, which represent the 11 apostles left after the betrayal of Christ. Between the wall sections is glass which lets light into the church, supplying much of the inside light in the church, especially during the midnight sun season.

The church benches are made of oak. The room is kept almost clean from decorations other than the walls, the prism lamps, the altar and the pew which are the important parts of the decor.

The stained-glas window in the East wall was added in 1972. The window was created by Victor Sparre, and is considered one of his most important works. It represents the hand of God, from which three rays of light emanate - one going through Jesus, one through the woman and one through the man.

This picture was taken 10 minutes to Midnight, in the midnight sun. The Arctic Cathedral like Tromsø is at 69 degrees, 38 minutes 54 seconds North and The Arctic Circle is at 66 degrees 33 minutes North, 3 degrees and 5 minutes further South than Tromsø, ensuring that the Sun stays up quite high in the sky all 24 hours of the day in the summertime, as the picture shows.