A historical jewel

Hestad Chapel is beautifully located on a tounge of land between Viksdalsvatnet and Hestadfjorden, a part of Gaularvassdraget. The tiny, brown church and its surroundings are protected to preserve the characteristic cultural history and natural qualities of the area.

A stave church stood on Hestad before  1327. In written sources it is first mentioned in a apostolic account from 1327. In the account it is described as «Capella de herstadum», while in the Bergen Kalvskinn, dating back to about 1350, it is called «Hedinstada kirkia». The stav church was taken down in 1805 and a new log church was built in the same spot. It has been a tradition to reuse parts from deconstructed buildings to make new ones. Due to this you often find parts from old stave churces where they gave way to the new churches. In the tower of the Hestad Chapel they used four strong, octagonal staves from the old stave church, and some of the joints are also likely to come from the old Church.