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All Finland Helsinki Temppeliaukio Church

Temppeliaukio Church

A subterranean house of worship carved right out of the bedrock.

Helsinki, Finland

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Allison Meier
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The church viewed from a hot air balloon   MKFI/Wikimedia
Temppeliaukio Church   Jaszmina Szendrey / Atlas Obscura User
Temppeliaukio roof   Global Sightseer / Atlas Obscura User
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About

Completed in 1969, Temppeliaukio Church is carved right from the bedrock in the center of Helsinki.

The underground house of worship, called Temppeliaukion kirkko in Finnish, was designed by architect brothers Timo and Tuomo Suomalainen in the charmingly named Töölö neighborhood. On all sides of the circular church are roughly hewn stone, where sometimes water still seeps in to create miniature waterfalls. A dome coated with copper covers the rock church, with a skylight open in a belt below it to make the dome appear to hover. Even further below the church is a Cold War-era air raid shelter, which now serves as parking. 

Despite its cave-like appearance, Temppeliaukio Church actually has marvelous acoustics, where the sound beautifully bounces from the craggy stone. 

Related Tags

Churches Subterranean Architectural Oddities Architecture Sacred Spaces

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The entrance to the church is at the northside of Fredrikinkatu

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Allison

Edited By

Jaszmina Szendrey, Global Sightseer

  • Jaszmina Szendrey
  • Global Sightseer

Published

September 25, 2013

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  • http://www.visithelsinki.fi/en/sights-and-attractions/temppeliaukio-church
  • Below Ground Level: Creating New Spaces for Contemporary Architecture http://books.google.com/books?id=wCUzC6_Ia54C&dq=Temppeliaukio+Church&source=gbs_navlinks_s
Temppeliaukio Church
Lutherinkatu 3
Helsinki, 00100
Finland
60.17297, 24.924974
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