Landmark: Hallgrímskirkja – The Church of Iceland
Features: At 74.5 metres (244 ft) tall, it is the largest church in Iceland and among the tallest structures in the country.
City: Reykjavík
Country: Iceland
Hallgrímskirkja (Icelandic pronunciation:[ˈhatl̥ˌkrimsˌcʰɪr̥ca], Church of Hallgrímur) is a Lutheran (Church of Iceland) parish church in Reykjavík, Iceland. At 74.5 metres (244 ft) tall, it is the largest church in Iceland and among the tallest structures in the country.
Hallgrímskirkja is the largest church in Iceland and towers over the centre of Reykjavík. It also houses the largest organ in the country. The tower is 73 meters high. It provides a panoramic view of Reykjavík, the surrounding mountains and the ocean stretching west to Greenland and the Americas. The tower is among the most visited tourist destinations in Reykjavík. The church was built between 1945 and 1986, and the parish is part of the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Iceland.
The statue of explorer Leif Erikson (c.970 – c.1020) by Alexander Stirling Calder in front of the church predates its construction. It was a gift from the United States in honor of the 1930 Althing Millennial Festival, commemorating the 1000th anniversary of the convening of Iceland’s parliament at Þingvellir in 930 AD.