St. Henry's Church

Pyhtää, Finland

The first evidence of Pyhtää as an independent parish dates back to 1380. At that time already the parish had a church, but it is not known where it was situated or what it looked like. Until 1600 Pyhtää included, besides its present area, also half of the present city of Kotka, Ruotsinpyhtää, Elimäki, the western parts of Anjalankoski, and a part of Lapinjärvi.

Dedicated to St. Henry, the church is situated where one of the westernmost branches of the river Kymi meets the ancient Turku-Viipuri coast road.

The building resembles the majority of the Finnish medieval stone churches. Pyhtää church, built about 1460, has retained its original medieval appearance almost untouched. There have been few alterations: the porch was converted into a memorial choir during the latter half of the 18th century, and in connection with repairs in 1907, buttresses were built to support the north wall and the sacristy was fitted with the outer entrance.

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Details

Founded: 1460
Category: Religious sites in Finland
Historical period: Middle Ages (Finland)

Rating

4.4/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Jarkko Juvonen (8 months ago)
A nice medieval church. Unfortunately, I didn't get to look inside, but I did look outside.
Tekoa “Rewind” Luchesse (14 months ago)
Church denominations and culturalristic views that are ways to be at peace
Matti Silverhut (2 years ago)
Handsome church, the scaffolding was a bit disturbing.. ??
Hannu Koistinen (2 years ago)
Nice church. Old paintings on the walls and ceiling
Juha Nikkinen (3 years ago)
The church is an old medieval stone church and was built in the 1460s and is almost in its original condition. It's worth a visit if you can even see the inside, but now I couldn't get there, I recommend it.
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