Coin finds of Høre stave church, Oppland, Norway: Reflections of regulation and conflict in the Middle Ages

Abstract

Scholars have long been drawn to the Valdres Valley and to the Hore stave church, which sits on plateau on its northern slope. Both the building history and the interior of Hore have been published and discussed by number of scholars since the nineteenth century. The church of Hore is mentioned eight times in written sources between 1327 and 1355, and over its life was subject to several changes of status, use and jurisdiction. The stave church at Hore is a long building divided into a rectangular nave, chancel with apsis and porch, with pentices to the north, south and west. Nearly 90% of the coins from the chancel were found in the eastern two-thirds of the structure. Despite its position in a rather remote Norwegian valley far from the centres of the Mother Church, the coin finds of Hore distinctly reflect some of the central policies and decisions around liturgy and the collection of tithes throughout the Middle Ages.