Iceland encyclopedia Church

Landakotskirkja

Landakotskirkja, the Cathedral of Christ the King, is Reykjavík's Roman Catholic cathedral. Consecrated on 23 July 1929, it links Gothic architectural forms with Guðjón Samúelsson's interest in Icelandic landscapes.

Overview

About Landakotskirkja

A cathedral after smaller churches

Catholic priests Bernard Bernard and Jean-Baptiste Baudoin settled at Landakot in the nineteenth century. A small chapel built in 1864 was followed by a timber church. Planning for a larger church gathered momentum after the First World War, and its cornerstone was laid in 1927. Guðjón's design used a neo-Gothic vocabulary, with external supports recalling columnar basalt. Builder Jens Eyjólfsson oversaw construction; a proposed spire was omitted, leaving the tower with its distinctive flat summit.

Sources: Catholic Church in Iceland — cathedral history and architecture ↗

Objects linking different centuries

The cathedral preserves Reykhóla-María, a medieval wooden image of Mary and the child Jesus, thought to date from the fourteenth century. Given to the church in 1926, it was crowned during Pope John Paul II's visit in 1989. The building received the title of basilica in 2000. Outside, Steinunn Þórarinsdóttir's sculpture Köllun commemorates the humanitarian work of the Sisters of Saint Joseph, connecting the cathedral precinct with the history of Catholic care and service in Iceland.

Sources: Catholic Church in Iceland — cathedral furnishings and memorials ↗

Article reviewed 28 September 2026.

Akureyrarkirkja

Akureyrarkirkja is the Lutheran church above Akureyri's town centre, distinguished by its paired, stepped towers. Designed by Guðjón Samúelsson, it is a major landmark of twentieth-century Icelandic church architecture.

Church

Budakirkja

Búðakirkja is the small black timber church at Búðir on Snæfellsnes. Its nineteenth-century fabric and the story of its reconstruction connect a familiar landscape landmark with local religious and architectural history.

Illustration