Iceland: Grafarkirkja Turf Church
Grafarkirkja is the oldest Christian church in Iceland, constructed in the 17th century. Absolutely in the middle of nowhere on an open grassy plain on the side of Scogarfjordur Fjord in front of snowy mountains, the tiny turf-covered black church was abandoned for years before fully restored. The black charred wood has engravings and thought to be the work of the famous 17th century woodcarver Guðmundur Guðmundsson. There actually was an Icelandic church here long before the Christian structure – the oldest account on Grafarkirkja is from around 1240 and can be found in Sturlunga Saga, a collection of Icelandic Sagas from the 12th and 13th centuries
