Church of the Rock, Helsinki

A highlight of a recent visit to Helsinki was the Church of the Rock, also known as Temppelliaukio Church. It is a Lutheran church, opened in 1969.

The church area, carved into the bedrock, is accessed from the street level. The entrance to the church does not suggest the wonders that lie within.

as seen from back

Two brothers, Timo and Tuomo Suomalainen, both architects, won a competition in 1961 for their proposal, in which the church hall was embedded into the stone. An earlier plan for the construction was disrupted by the outbreak of World War II. 

The elliptic church hall is bathed in daylight, which passes into the hall from narrow skylights between the rock wall and the copper ceiling dome. The inner surface of the dome is clad in 22 km of copper tape.

The diameter of the dome is 24 metres, and the highest point is 13 meters from the floor. The excavation surface of the walls has been left rough for acoustic and aesthetic reasons. Water trickling from cracks in the rock is led away along channels under the floor. The height of the walls is 5 - 9 metres.

The altar wall is a split in the rock dating back to the Ice Age. The altar table is granite that has been evenly sawn. The floor is polished concrete, and the pulpit is made of reinforced concrete.

The acoustics of the hall are excellent, and the church is often used as a concert venue.

A balcony expands the seating to 750.

The stone's timeless quality and massive grandeur creates a sense of wonder and awe equal to that of any Gothic cathedral.  For more information, I refer you to the Wikipedia website.