Espoon Vanha Kirkko

At least as early as the sixteenth century, the inhabitants of Espoo used to travel several miles to hear the Word of God in this church, which many people consider to be the most beautiful church in the area. The oldest building in Espoo, it dates from the early fifteenth century; the material is quarried grey stone, with brick ornaments on the ends. The builder was an "unknown master" from Espoo. During the last century the church was restored twice, as were the original al secco paintings representing biblical history and the sixteenth-century wooden crucifix above the altarpiece. Turquoise benches cheer up this otherwise quite dark church. This is one of the most popular wedding churches in the Helsinki region: especially on summer Saturdays it is always fully booked.

There is an old cemetery with soldiers' graves. The belfry, made of grey stone and wood dates from 1767; it has three bells, the largest dating from 1765. Services are held on Sundays at 10am in Finnish and 12pm in Swedish. The church is popular for concerts; June to August an organ concert is held in this splendid setting every Thursday at 10pm. Trains S, U, L and E stop only five minutes away from here.

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• Attraction Type: Religious Buildings

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