Hallgrímskirkja

Iceland's Landmark

The Hallgrímskirkja is the most prominent building in Iceland and visible from almost everywhere in the city. The 74.5-meter-high Lutheran church was built from 1945 to 1986 — over 41 years! — and its facade of concrete columns is reminiscent of the basalt columns found throughout Iceland's nature.

The architect Guðjón Samúelsson designed the church in 1937 but did not live to see its completion. The expressionist architecture divides opinions: Some find it brutalist, others see in it the perfect connection of Icelandic nature and architecture — the soaring columns imitate the hexagonal basalt columns found at Reynisfjara, Svartifoss, and Dverghamrar.

The tower (elevator + a few steps) offers the best 360° panorama over Reykjavík: The colorful roofs of the city, the sea, the mountains, and in clear weather even the Snæfellsjökull glacier 120 km away. In front of the church stands the statue of Leifur Eiríksson, the Viking who discovered America 500 years before Columbus — a gift from the USA in 1930 for the 1,000th anniversary of the Alþingi.

The Klais Organ — a Masterpiece

Inside, besides the simple elegance, the massive Klais organ with 5,275 pipes impresses, installed in 1992 by the German organ-building company Johannes Klais from Bonn. It is 15 meters high and weighs 25 tons. The acoustics in the high church are exceptional — regular organ concerts take place (Thursday and Sunday, admission approx. 3,500 ISK/23€). The Klais organ makes the Hallgrímskirkja one of Iceland's most important concert halls for classical music.

On Sundays at 11 am, a service with organ music takes place — a moving experience even for non-believers.