Norwegian Folk Museum

Oslo, Norway

Norsk Folkemuseum, the Norwegian Museum of Cultural History, is a museum of cultural history with extensive collections of artifacts from all social groups and all regions of the country. It also incorporates a large open air museum with more than 150 buildings relocated from towns and rural districts.

Norsk Folkemuseum was established in 1894 by librarian and historian Hans Aall (1867-1946). It acquired the core area of its present property in 1898. After having built temporary exhibition buildings and re-erected a number of rural buildings, the museum could open its gates to the public in 1901. In 1907 the collections of King Oscar II on the neighbouring site was incorporated into the museum. Its five relocatd buildings, with the Gol stave church in the centre, is recognized as the world's first open air museum, founded in 1881.

Among the open air museum's more significant buildings are Gol stave church from the 13th century which was incorporated into the Norsk Folkemuseum in 1907. The Gol Stave Church is one of five medieval buildings at the museum, which also includes the Rauland farmhouse (Raulandstua) from the 14th century, and the 1865 tenement building relocated from 15 Wessels gate in Oslo. Seven of the nine flats show typical interiors from various periods of the 19th and 20th centuries, including a flat inhabited by an immigrant family from Pakistan as it was furnished in 2002. In 1951, the Sami collections in the Ethnographic Museum of the University of Oslo were transferred to the Norsk Folkemuseum.

The museum also possesses a large photographic archive, including a significant portion of the works of Anders Beer Wilse. In 2004, the administration of the adjacent Bygdøy Royal Estate was transferred to the museum. Throughout its existence, research has focused on building and furniture, clothing and textiles, technical and social culture, agriculture, working memory and Sami culture.

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Address

Museumsveien 10, Oslo, Norway
See all sites in Oslo

Details

Founded: 1894
Category: Museums in Norway

Rating

4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Peter Simpson (8 months ago)
A must visit when in Oslo, the old village is lovely, building to roam around, can easily fill a full day. Animals to see, demonstrate of local music and dance. Shows you Oslo through the ages highly recommended!
Azadeh Zahedi (8 months ago)
If you don't know anything about history and culture of Norway, this museum is the right place for you. We really enjoyed it. The houses there are real from 12th to 1950's and there are people sitting inside to explain to you with more details.
Ashwini Rao (8 months ago)
Beautiful place. Must visit. It has beautiful vintage Norwegian houses with actual setups. There are people dressed up to greet you at these houses and give you information about the same. Ticket is a bit pricey (180kr) . But a nice place to visit.
Simon (10 months ago)
I think visiting this museum was my best discovery in Oslo. We were 4 friends on trip and enjoyed every moment of this visit, that is really consistent - if you will to read everything you can easily spend 3-4 hours here. The best part was for us the outside with the evolution of the houses ans the actors inside - amazing ! 100% recommended.
James P (12 months ago)
Must see if visiting Oslo/Norway. Museum is really informative and big. The exhibits inside are nice and interesting but the outside is what really makes it special. Buildings and being able to go inside them is great. Nice bits of information about them and the year they were created. Lot of walking and can take about 2-3 hours but well worth it.
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