As in many other countries around the world, in Iceland the churches (or Lutheran churches) are among the most important and beautiful architectural monuments we can see.

Many of them are quite ordinary, but some are extremely interesting and completely different from the ‘continental’ examples we know.

• The four basic types we can find in Iceland are:
  the modern ordinary’ church – such as the one in Vik; usually with white brick walls and a red roof; it is currently the most popular temple type on the island
• a turf-covered church (earth and grass); this is the oldest traditional type of Icelandic temple and probably the most interesting to see for a visitor from outside the island; beautiful examples include a church in Vidimyri in the north and another moved from the same area to an open-air museum in Reykjavik;
• wooden church; wood is a very difficult material to find in Iceland, so building a temple out of wood was a sign of respect for the building; the most beautiful example of such a building is often considered the prettiest church in all of Iceland, the black church of Búðakirkja, on Cape Snaefellsnes; this church also has a very interesting and surprising history of its creation
• modern, large, concrete modernist churches; the chief example here is naturally Hallgrímskirkja in Reykjavik, but there are several more minor, but equally interesting, examples of such architecture throughout the island;