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The roofless remains of St. Magnus Church stand on the western side of Egilsay – dominating the island on which St Magnus was executed early in the 12th century.
Built towards the end of the 12th century, the church is made up of a rectangular nave and a square chancel, with a tall round tower on the western end. Despite the lack of a roof, the remains are still in good condition.
The structure lost its roof sometime in the mid to late 19th century. An early 19th sketch shows a stone roof over kirk’s nave, chancel and tower.
It is thought that the kirk was built on the spot of an earlier church – the one mentioned in the sagas as the site of Earl Magnus’ murder in 1115, 1116, 1117 or 1118.
References:The Church of St Donatus name refers to Donatus of Zadar, who began construction on this church in the 9th century and ended it on the northeastern part of the Roman forum. It is the largest Pre-Romanesque building in Croatia.
The beginning of the building of the church was placed to the second half of the 8th century, and it is supposed to have been completed in the 9th century. The Zadar bishop and diplomat Donat (8th and 9th centuries) is credited with the building of the church. He led the representations of the Dalmatian cities to Constantinople and Charles the Great, which is why this church bears slight resemblance to Charlemagne's court chapels, especially the one in Aachen, and also to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. It belongs to the Pre-Romanesque architectural period.
The circular church, formerly domed, is 27 m high and is characterised by simplicity and technical primitivism.