Facebook
The sculptures in the Gulatinget Millennium Site park have been created by the Norwegian sculptor Bård Breivik. They consist of the monumental “Tingveggen” (Assembly Wall), “Tinghella” (Assembly Flagstone) and “Eldsirkelen” (Circle of Fire). Five sculptures representing “Lovmenn” (Lawspeakers) have also been purchased, one of which has been set up by the main road opposite the Millennium Site park. There are plans to set up the remaining figures in the approach to the Gulating. The sculptures are made from diorite-light-granite from Yantai, in the northeastern Shandong province in China.
Tingveggen
The principal artwork at Gulatinget Millennium Site is the majestic Tingveggen, a wall of standing stones, with finely carved reliefs. Both crosses and swords can be seen, pointing towards the introduction of Christianity. But Tingveggen can mean different things to different people. What does it tell you?
Tinghella
Tinghella (The Assembly Flagstone), which lies in front of Tingveggen, is a slim, projecting stone floor, which forms a stage or a shelf carved out of the landscape. The top of Tinghella is also made of diorite-light-granite from the quarries in Yantai and illustrates why Bård Breivik uses granite from these quarries: Tinghella measures 21.60m x 7.60m and was quarried in a single piece! If you stand on it you will see a marble vein running right through the entire stone from west to east. Such large surfaces of granite of this kind are not found in Norway. The stone was divided up for shipment to Norway.
Eldsirkelen
The third artwork is Eldsirkelen (The Circle of Fire), which is the round stone surface you see to the left when you enter the park. It is also made from diorite-light-granite from Yantai. Here visitors can light a fire and keep warm when there is an event at the Gulatinget Millennium Site, just as we imagine took place at the assemblies during the Viking age and in medieval times.