Luostarinmäki Handicrafts Museum, Turku, Finland

Luostarinmäki is the only unified part of the Turku city that survived the conflagration of 1827. The area consists of 18 blocks of original 18th century – early 19th century buildings on their original location. Today Luostarinmäki is an outdoor museum that offers over 30 workshops from different fields of craftmanship display the City's handicrafts history and craftsmen's dwellings.

During the summer season, the museum's workshops have craftsmen working there every day. The museum's shops, postal office and cafeteria serve customers round the year.

User Reviews

J K C (12 months ago)
Lovely idyllic outdoor museum to spend a few hours at. Some of the buildings are not open year-round so it is worth checking ahead of time. There is often events in the summer that showcases more of the traditional handicrafts of Finland. Great place to visit for family with kids.

Monika (12 months ago)
It made me feel like a time-traveler, a must-see in Turku!

Dorje Chen (13 months ago)
This was an interesting open air museum. It was worth the price of admission.

Panagiotis Tatinas (13 months ago)
A very nice place, like an open air museum for those who would like to see how old Turku was

Sami Pentti (14 months ago)
One of the best museums I have been in Finland. There are a lot to see here and the price is quite low. They also have different craftsmen and women working there on some shops who will explain how the old school crafting is done in detail and even show you! Its great to see that kind or stuff in a museum. You can almost feel like going back in time here.

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The Broch of Gurness is an Iron Age broch village. Settlement here began sometime between 500 and 200 BC. At the centre of the settlement is a stone tower or broch, which once probably reached a height of around 10 metres. Its interior is divided into sections by upright slabs. The tower features two skins of drystone walls, with stone-floored galleries in between. These are accessed by steps. Stone ledges suggest that there was once an upper storey with a timber floor. The roof would have been thatched, surrounded by a wall walk linked by stairs to the ground floor. The broch features two hearths and a subterranean stone cistern with steps leading down into it. It is thought to have some religious significance, relating to an Iron Age cult of the underground.

The remains of the central tower are up to 3.6 metres high, and the stone walls are up to 4.1 metres thick. The tower was likely inhabited by the principal family or clan of the area but also served as a last resort for the village in case of an attack.

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In the 9th century, a Norse woman was buried at the site in a stone-lined grave with two bronze brooches and a sickle and knife made from iron. Other finds suggest that Norse men were buried here too.

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