Grindheim Church (Vestland)
Grindheim Church () is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Etne Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Etnesjøen. It is one of the churches for the Etne parish which is part of the Sunnhordland prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The white, wooden church was built in a long church design in 1724 using plans drawn up by an unknown architect. The church seats about 250 people. History The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1326, but it was not new that year. The church was a wooden stave church that was likely built during the 13th century. The location must have been an important site on which to build a church since this location includes the largest pre-Christian burial site in Etne with more than 200 burial mounds. Today most of it is cultivated farmland and only some large mounds remain. To the far south is a large site with small mounds dating from the Bronze Age. In 1673, the church was badly damaged in a storm (like the nearby Gjerde Church), but this church was repaired and its structure was reinforced. By