Cultural environment is the collective expression of traces that people have left behind through the ages. In addition to visible imprints, there are also invisible ones, for example place names or a place where something happened and which therefore makes it special.
For the Norrbotten Museum, the cultural environment in Norrbotten is an important focus area. We mediate, carry out assignments and give advice in matters relating to cultural environments.
Through archaeological activities, we constantly gain new knowledge about the county's prehistory. The results of archaeological investigations over the past twenty years mean that Norrbotten's history must be rewritten.
For over 10 years, people have lived in northern Sweden. More than 000 years ago, even iron and steel were produced with advanced technology. The ancient and cultural remains that people have left behind are important for our common cultural heritage.
Archaeological excavation at Ligga Stone Age grave. Photo: G Rúnar Gudmundsson, Norrbotten Museum.
Archaeological missions are carried out before an area is to be built on, or if the area is to be used in a new or different way. The archaeological work can be divided into different stages. These steps are regulated in, among other things, the Environmental Code and the Cultural Environment Act (KML). Norrbotten's museum carries out all these tasks.
Environmental impact statement (EIA) is carried out at an early stage to give an overall picture of the environmental impact of the planned work. The EIA is done at the direct request of the developer or consultant.
We carry out cultural-historical analyzes that can be incorporated into an EIA. We can deliver overall analyzes together with the museum's architectural antiquities, or analyzes with a focus solely on archaeology. They can be done as pure desktop products, but also in combination with field work.
Archaeological investigation is carried out to find out if ancient remains are affected by the planned work. Investigations are mainly carried out based on KML at the request of the County Administrative Board, but can also be done at the direct request of the developer - outside KML.
Archaeological investigations is always carried out based on KML and upon request by the County Administrative Board.
An archaeological preliminary investigation is carried out, among other things, to assess the size and find content of an ancient site. If an ancient remains needs to be removed, an archaeological investigation is carried out. During the investigation, the remains are documented, findings are taken in and analyses. The results are collected in a report. The documentation is saved for the future in the museum's archives and collections.
Osteological analysis and macrofossil analysis
If bones are found during an archaeological investigation, the museum's osteologist can analyze them to find out which animals are in the material.
Have you found a strange pit, a collection of rocks, a strange object, or something that seems old? Then it could be an ancient relic or an ancient find.
According to the Cultural Environment Act, ancient remains are the remains of human activities in ancient times. They have been added through ancient use and are permanently abandoned. For something to be classified as an ancient relic, it must have been added before the year 1850.
Examples of remains that can be classified as ancient remains:
According to the Cultural Environment Act, antiquities are objects from prehistoric or older times that have no owner when they are found.
You can read more about ancient finds at The National Antiquities Authority's website (opens in new window).
After each archaeological mission, the results are collected and interpreted in a report. You can find our reports at The National Antiquities Authority's website (opens in new window).
If you cannot find the report you are looking for, you can contact us in the following ways:
If you belong to a school, association, municipality or similar, you are welcome to hire us to hold a lecture or screening.
The lectures that we hold in our own premises are free and open to everyone.
In connection with archaeological investigations and investigations, we often hold tours or lectures for the public. Look out for more information on our social media or in the calendar here on the website.
If you need information signs or texts for exhibitions, we can help.
Below you can read about some current and ongoing projects that Norrbotten's museum runs or participates in.
Glacial archeology is a relatively new field of research in archaeology. The research involves inventorying traces of historical and prehistoric activities hidden and preserved in glaciers and permanent snow patches. Global warming causes findings to melt away at a rapid rate and be exposed. Therefore, it is important to inventory in these areas to collect finds that have not yet decayed and disappeared.
Between 2021 and 2024, Norrbotten's museum inventoried along melting glaciers and snow patches in Swedish Sápmi, mainly within Gällivare and Kiruna municipalities. The Silver Museum in Arjeplog has inventoried in Arjeplog municipality and Ájtte - Swedish Mountain and Sami Museum in Jokkmokk municipality.
In Norrbotten, finds have been made of shafted arrows and points dated to the Viking and Middle Ages, as well as ski fragments and axki from historical times. In addition, reindeer antlers and reindeer bones have been found, which in some cases have been dated to the Stone Age. An arrow/spearhead made of horn, probably from the Stone Age, has also been found. The goal was to try to document the reindeer hunting that took place on glaciers and snowfields.
Glacial archaeological finds have been made in various places around the world. Perhaps the most famous find is the Iceman, or Ötzi as he is also known, who lay frozen in a glacier in the Alps for more than 5000 years.
However, finds of human remains are not commonplace. It is more common to make archaeological finds linked to hunting and transport such as parts of quivers, skids and arrows. In Norway, they have also found more personal equipment such as used shoes and clothing.
The research project GLAS included inventories along the entire Swedish mountain chain. The project was initiated by Stockholm University and is financed by the Marcus and Amalia Wallenberg Memorial Foundation. In addition to Stockholm University and Norrbotten Museum, Jämtland County Museum Jamtli, the Silver Museum in Arjeplog, Ájtte - Swedish Mountain and Sami Museum and Västerbotten Museum participated.
The desert cemetery at Silbojokk/Silbbajåhkå is eroding out into lake Sädvajaure/Sädvvajávrre. Therefore, the Norrbotten Museum carries out archaeological investigations on the site. The purpose of the investigations is to make use of as much information as possible before it is destroyed. From an ethical perspective, it is also not good for human remains to be washed up on the beach.
The investigations have been carried out in batches since 2003. Up to and including 2022, about ninety graves have been investigated. The surveyed area is approximately 500 square meters. The original burial site is estimated to have been approximately 400 square meters. The area that remains to be investigated is mainly inside the church grounds, and there we know that there are still graves.
To date, Norrbotten's museum has collected over 1100 finds. The most common finds are nails, window glass, lead bars, fittings, knives and fire steel. The finds come partly from the two churches that stood on the site, and partly from graves.
During the first investigations, many finds were lying loose on the beach after being washed away by the water. In recent years, most finds are found in their original place, especially in graves. The finds mainly consist of nails and fittings from coffins, but also more personal items such as knives and fire steel. In some graves, details from clothing have also been found. Some unusual finds have also been found; a probable driving staff, fragments of silk cloth and two egg-shaped stones.
The most important purpose of the work in Silbojokk is to examine the graves that lie on the surface. Partly to prevent the human remains from eroding onto the beach, which is highly unethical as the site can be visited by the public. But also partly because the information in the graves and the human remains can tell personal stories about what life was like during the 1600th-1700th centuries in the inland of Upper Norrland. They are invaluable supplements to the historical sources.
So far, various analyzes have provided information on, among other things, age, kinship, health, eating habits and how people moved in the area.
On the Norrbotten museum's blog there are several posts about Silbojokk and the archaeological investigations.
Since autumn 2016, historians of technology at Luleå University of Technology and archaeologists at Norrbotten Museum have collaborated in the interdisciplinary research project Iron in the North. The goal is to create a deeper understanding of the early iron handling in the northern area and place it in a wider European context.
By interweaving iron handling with the people's other everyday activities and the challenges of the landscape/climate in the north, a richer and more multifaceted picture of the ancient societies emerges. The results that have arrived therefore not only break new ground in iron research in Europe, but also shed new light on the ancient hunting and trapping societies in the north.
The project examines how the expansion of hydropower in Norrland has affected ancient and cultural historical remains, people and communities.
When Norrland's lakes and waterways were to be expanded to extract hydropower, several of these were lined with rich ancient and cultural historical remains. But expansion and regulation have since destroyed or damaged many such cultural heritage sites, along with climate change in recent decades. This project examines the extent of these consequences.
Another part of the project is to investigate how expansions have affected the people who live and work there. The introduction of hydroelectric power fundamentally transformed people's relationship with the rivers. Both industries (reindeer herding, fishing, cattle breeding, etc.) as well as infrastructures and cultural heritage (routes, significant places, etc.) that have long characterized people's interaction with the rivers were affected or disappeared.
The owner of the research project is Luleå University of Technology. Participating parties are the Norrbotten Museum, the Västerbotten Museum, Umeå University and the National Antiquities Authority.
The red oak grave in Liggá is one of the oldest prehistoric graves in Norrbotten. The hydropower expansion has meant that the grave is about to erode into the Stora Lule river.
The red oak graves in Ligga were discovered in connection with the National Antiquities Agency's antiquities inventory in the area in 1994. From 2022, the Norrbotten Museum will carry out an archaeological rescue survey to secure the scientific information from the site before it is too late.
On Norrbotten's museum's blog you can read about several assignments and about the work (the blog opens in a new window).
Via the links below, you can read the Norrbotten museum's policy for human remains. The appendix describes inventory entered and non-inventory materials of human remains.
In Norrbotten there is everything from graying meadow barns and Sami buildings, to magnificent Norrbotten farms and large church and Lappish towns. In order for them to be preserved for future generations, the Norrbotten Museum's building and building antiquities work in several different ways. For example, they often monitor the cultural values of buildings during urban planning, give tips and advice when church cottages, residential buildings and apartments are renovated and can also make inventories of valuable cultural environments.
Building care is pretty much what it sounds like - looking after a building. But what is the best way to do it?
The basis of building maintenance is a focus on character and style. But also that materials and methods with which the building was once constructed are used during renovation. You often have to compromise between today's building regulations and the choice of materials and execution at the time. If you find a good compromise, you also preserve the soul of the building.
If you own a property, you also have a responsibility to take care of it based on "Planning and Building Act chapter 8 § 13 § 14 - the prohibition of tampering and the requirement of care". Sometimes it can be tricky to know how to do it in a good way. Feel free to contact the Norrbotten Museum's building antiques for help along the way.
Do you need advice on questions about buildings and building maintenance? Perhaps you own a building and plan to implement measures? Feel free to contact the Norrbotten Museum's building antiques for tips and advice on how you can carry out your projects without jeopardizing the building's cultural-historical value and health.
The first consultation is free of charge.
We carry out tasks in the form of antiquarian participation when a building maintenance grant has been granted from the county board in accordance with the "Ordinance (SFS 2010:1121) on the management of valuable cultural environments".
We carry out cultural-historical investigations and analyzes of the built environment. The purpose of a cultural environment analysis is to identify and describe the cultural values of the built environment and to investigate how a planned exploitation affects the cultural environment.
Cultural environment analyzes are often done in connection with development projects and detailed planning work. The analysis can also be included as part of an environmental impact statement (EIA) and serve as a basis for future development work.
The cultural environment program is a knowledge base that highlights the buildings and environments that are judged to be culturally and historically valuable in a municipality.
A cultural environment program can function as a concrete tool in an individual planning situation, but also as an overall vision document for the municipality's most important cultural-historical stories. The aim is for property owners, community planners and the public to know the municipality's cultural environments so that they can be carefully managed.
Culturally valuable buildings can be considered historical documents. The buildings carry stories about craftsmanship, architecture, social development, traditions and about the people who lived in and around them. Most buildings sooner or later face a major change and sometimes even demolition. With the help of building documentation, valuable knowledge about a building can be preserved.
A building documentation can look different. It can either cover a building in its entirety, both exterior and interior, or only a part of the building. Usually the historical context of the building is also included in the documentation.
A built-up inventory means that information about a built-up environment is compiled and analyzed based on a cultural-historical perspective. The inventory is based on studies in the field in combination with literature and archival material. It is common for inventories to be used as a basis for detailed or overview planning, when assessing the cultural-historical values of individual buildings or in connection with a cultural environment program being drawn up or changed.
In order for a building to be preserved, it is important that it is cared for and maintained continuously. Through damage prevention measures, the chances of a building's survival can be strengthened. A care and maintenance plan (VoU plan) contributes information about a building's condition, damage and need for action. The care and maintenance plan also provides guidance on which measures are recommended to ensure long-term preservation.
When developing a care and maintenance plan, the building is first carefully examined to find out its status and identify any damage. After that, the property owner receives instructions on which measures are suitable for the building, for example material and color choice or craft method. The care and maintenance plan must be helpful for the property owner when planning the building's future maintenance and long-term management.
We respond to referrals from municipalities and other bodies in matters concerning culturally valuable buildings and environments.
On request, we conduct lectures, city walks and workshops linked to cultural conservation, cultural environments and building conservation.
The main aim of the Interreg Aurora project is to preserve and promote the centuries-old cultural heritage of trawl fishing in Tornedalen for future generations. The living cultural heritage is a vital and well-known part of Torneälven's identity.
The project consists of four work packages that include activities from the development of a protection strategy to a mobile exhibition, VR tools and applications. The goal is to make the cross-border gillnet fishing culture better known using, for example, events, podcasts and marketing materials. An essential part of the project is to transfer knowledge to younger generations. Traditional practitioners, fishing communities, municipalities, organizations and other stakeholders are involved in the sustainable protection work in the project.
The project runs between 1 August–28 February 2027.
Project Torne Valley Dipnet Culture is a collaboration between the city of Tornio (main applicant), the city of Haparanda, Norrbotten Museum/Region Norrbotten and Vocational College Novia. The umbrella organization Pro Siika ry is an official partner of the project and represents the traditional community and associations on both sides of the border. The Tornedalen Museum is responsible for the project administration.
Here you will find information concerning building maintenance, buildings and cultural environments. If you want to delve further into an area, we recommend that you check out the list of literature tips under the heading further down.
Everyday care and maintenance of buildings should be done carefully and long-term, and based on the building's character and cultural-historical value. During maintenance and restoration, you should use the same type of materials, processing and construction techniques as when the building was constructed. At the same time, you contribute to the survival of the construction industry.
When repairing damage, as a general rule, you should preserve, supplement and reuse as much of the original material as possible. Only when deemed necessary should the material be replaced. If you have to replace wood, it is better to use new wood that has been processed with the right craftsmanship and method, than to reuse wood that has been processed differently from the original. Roofing materials – such as wind boards and battens – should always be made of new, fully functional wood.
If you use traditional materials and methods, future measures will be relatively easy to implement. New additions should be made so that they do not distort the whole and be documented or marked so that they can be distinguished from preserved original parts.
Culturally valuable houses do not have the same energy/saving potential as a building without cultural historical value. Cultural-historical and aesthetic aspects must be taken into account, where, for example, window replacements and additional insulation are not an option. You can take energy efficiency measures, but should then choose the right one based on the building's conditions so that the building's values and character are not damaged - but also for practical reasons. For example, old houses often depend on self-drafting to keep them comfortable and maintain a healthy indoor environment. Improperly performed insulation impairs self-draft and can lead to damage to the building.
If you have just bought a house, it is important that you do not rush the energy-saving measures, but think before doing so. Live in the house for a while, get to know it and listen to your senses before making a decision. Where is the cold coming from? Is the electricity bill too expensive? Is the heat source working optimally? Does the choice of heat source need to be reviewed?
See also review your requirements. Do all rooms need to be heated equally, or can you lower the heat in the hall and spaces that you don't use very often? How many clothes are you wearing? Are slippers an option, or an extra blanket in the bed? Are you comparing your house with the comfort of an apartment or a newly built house?
Take the help of an independent energy adviser at the municipality. A good energy consultant ensures that the building's cultural and historical values are not damaged. Make it clear that you want to protect your building and its qualities. Clarify at an early stage that the cultural-historical and aesthetic aspects must be taken into account. Then the conditions for energy efficiency are clear right from the start. It is also an advantage to hire craftsmen and energy consultants who are interested in working with older houses, as different and creative solutions may be needed. Each house needs its own comprehensive solution.
Different energy-saving measures affect each other. If the attic floor gets better insulation and the heat losses are reduced, the prerequisites for the heating system change. If you can make the heating system more efficient and reduce energy costs, it is less profitable to insulate additionally.
Sources: Broström, Tor, 2007. "Energy-saving prerequisite for conservation". In: Tidskriften Byggnadskultur no. 1/2007. Stockholm.
K-marking is a collective term that is often used for culturally and historically valuable buildings and environments. The word comes from older town and building plans where culturally important buildings were pointed out and protected with a "K".
Today, such buildings are protected with other letters in detailed plans, mainly with "q". They are often then not allowed to be torn down or defaced - that is, changed in such a way that the cultural-historical value is reduced. The word K-marking is still used in everyday speech. The fact that a building is said to be K-marked does not mean that it is automatically protected by law, but it may be considered valuable in the eyes of the public and should therefore be protected.
Buildings and environments that have a cultural value can be protected in different ways. If you want to know which rules apply to your particular house, contact the city planning office in your municipality.
According to the Cultural Heritage Act, churches (built before 1940) and monuments have special protection. The County Administrative Board can declare a building as a building monument. Anyone can propose that a building be protected.
The Planning and Building Act gives municipalities the opportunity to protect buildings and environments, mainly through q-marking and area regulations. Environments can also be singled out in various cultural environment programs as particularly valuable and thus worth preserving.
Entire areas that contain such unusual cultural values that they are important for the country or county can be designated as national interests or cultural reserves according to the Environmental Code. In Norrbotten there are today two cultural reserves: Hanhinvittiko fäbod in Övertorneå municipality and the village of Gallejaur in Arvidsjaur municipality.
You should start from the house's own conditions if you are going to renovate or rebuild - regardless of whether it is a Norrbottensgård from the 1700th century, a funk villa from the 1940s or a million program area. Some renovations can entail drastic changes to the building's exterior and architecture.
It usually takes a 100-year period for a building to be perceived as culturally and historically valuable. Take a period brick villa from the 1960s as an example. The building is insulated on the outside and covered with wooden panels. The double-glazed windows in two bays are replaced with newly manufactured triple-glazed windows in one bay, the windows end up like deep eyes in the facade. With such a change, the house has often lost its harmony and the architect's thought when the building was designed is as if blown away. This scenario wouldn't raise an eyebrow today, but probably 50 years from now people will find it appalling. Many may think that 1800th century houses are worth preserving, but do not see the value in not renovating the 1950s villa. Not until it's too late.
There are many church environments in Norrbotten. This includes buildings of the Church of Sweden, such as churches and chapels. But also cemeteries, burial grounds and parsonages.
An environment that is particularly common in Norrbotten and Västerbotten are the church towns. They grew up at the church sites as the distance to the church was long and the need for overnight accommodation great. Read more about this below, under the heading "Churches in Norrbotten".
It is not only church buildings that are valuable for our cultural heritage. This also includes cemeteries and burial grounds. All church buildings, church grounds and burial grounds that were built before 1940 are therefore protected according to the Cultural Heritage Act and may not be changed without permission from the county board. There are also a number of church buildings that are protected under the Cultural Environment Act, even though they were built after 1940, because they are considered to have very high cultural values.
The protection in the Cultural Heritage Act also covers church furnishings. For all churches that are protected within Luleå diocese, care and maintenance plans have therefore been drawn up to facilitate the work with long-term maintenance of the churches and their inventory.
Most churches in Norrbotten have specific characteristics and descriptions, which the county administrative board of Norrbotten County together with the Norrbotten Museum have produced. The characterizations together with the care and maintenance plans make it easier when the county administrative board has to handle permit matters for church renovations. They also make it easier when the church antiquities allowance is to be distributed, a contribution that the congregations can apply to the diocese.
In the northern part of Sweden, it was often a long way to church. So when compulsory church attendance was introduced in the 1600th century, smaller cottages were built around the church one belonged to. The cottages were for temporary accommodation when attending religious services, but they were used just as often when there were markets and things.
Most of the church cottages we see today are not those that stood on the site during the 1600th century, but were often added during the 1800th century.
There have been seventy-one church and Lapp towns in Sweden. Today, only sixteen remain, of which eight are in Norrbotten:
What do you need to think about before construction of
roof allowance in Norrbotten's church towns. Is it at all suitable in your church town and what is the best solution to also take into account the cultural environment? Via the link below, you can read a brochure on guidelines and approaches for chimney fittings and roof safety.
We live today in an industrial society. This is not least noticeable in Norrbotten, which is characterized by large-scale industries in basic industries such as forestry, ore and hydropower. In addition to the large industries, small-scale industrial activity has also been important for the county's development. In Norrbotten there is an industrial landscape that bears witness to the county's history.
When the ore was discovered in the ore fields, an extensive process started which has gained great importance for the county. People have known about the ore for a long time and already in the 1600th century they tried to make mining profitable. However, it was only in connection with the construction of the Malmbanan that the attempts were successful and an efficient export of the ore from Gällivare and Kiruna was made possible. The ore line is the railway that stretches between the ore ports in Luleå and Narvik.
With the mining of the ore and the operation of the ore line came an increased need for electricity. The power station in Porjus was built and thus the electricity supply was secured.
The increased exploitation of northern Sweden, the increased value of the ore and the importance of the ore railway for the country's infrastructure brought about a greater need for a changed defense policy in Sweden. The fortress of Boden was built and to protect the county and its assets the garrison of Boden was also established.
These different investments are dependent on each other and can be seen as parts of a whole. Collectively, they are usually called Norrbotten's technological megasystem, a term coined in the 1990s by Professor Staffan Hansson at Luleå University of Technology.
The forest and the forest landscape have always been an important natural resource for man's housing needs. But over the years, its importance as a resource for housing needs and additional income has changed. For a long time, firewood, building and craft materials, ship timber, food, animal feed and medicines have been obtained from the forest. The forest has been a storehouse for raw materials, a woodshed, a pantry and a pharmacy. When iron was produced, charcoal was required to be heated in order to forge the metal. One of Sweden's most important exports in the 1600th century was wood tar, which was extracted from dry pines, wind-felled resinous pines and tar-rich stumps. Wood tar was also used as a lubricant and impregnation agent.
Due to the technological developments that took place during the 1800th century, the use of resources changed radically, and the conditions for subsistence changed. Steam saws and the art of producing paper pulp by the sulphite method made timber the forest's green gold and water its means of transport. The saw and paper industry demanded that felling be made more efficient. Forestry work also began to be carried out in the winter and rafting work during the summer, when the mountain and spring rivers could be used.
A seasonal work that could be combined with small-scale farming was created. The forest and the water laid the foundation for our prosperity. Rafting associations were formed and the forest workers organized themselves into unions. From the 1950s, the water lost its importance for floating as a result of motorization and the expansion of the road network. However, water gained increasing value as a power source.
As the forest industry grew, the appearance of the buildings also changed. They began to use wooden panels on timbered houses and it became increasingly common to make buildings from loose timber.
The tar valley sites and charcoal pits that the archaeologists find during their inventories remind us of the forest's importance as a resource for housing needs and for bee income.
Cultivation and agriculture have for a long time been an important part of our society. Many of the older buildings that are connected to the farming landscape are still there, and the differences between, for example, the coast and Tornedalen can be quite clear. Round log cabins are common around the coast, while Tornedalen's buildings have eastern influences. Especially common is the aittan, which is a characteristic herbre with flared walls.
In Norrbotten's coastal region, the meadow barn is one of the most characteristic buildings in the farming landscape with its sloping walls. In the barn on the field, the cut hay was stored until the farmer brought the harvest home to the farm. This often happened in winter when the snow and hard ground facilitated the sled's progress.
Today, the meadow barns are under threat. Many have been demolished or moved away from the meadows. Today, only about 15 percent of the barns that were registered during the barn inventory that was made in the 1950s remain.
During the 1700th century, the timbered long lodge became popular. It had openings in both gables and could be between 30-40 meters long. The long logs were built to thresh the crop that was lying on the floor. This was done by driving wheeled threshing wagons and threshing rollers with cylindrical rollers, from one end to the other. Outside the gables of the lodge, the team turned around and then drove back the same way.
The round lodge was the successor of the long lodge when it came to threshing buildings, and was often built with six or eight sides. The shape may have been taken from the Russian soldiers who remained after the war of 1809. In the vernacular, the round logs are said to have also been called "Russian barns".
During the second half of the 1800th century, the round lodge was a common sight in the coastal regions of Norrbotten and Västerbotten. The logs were timbered with a smooth knot, a so-called salmon knot. Many also had broken gable roofs, so-called mansard roofs.
Inside the round lodge was a center post which was used for a conical roller, which facilitated the threshing.
The vase-shaped aitta is a kind of storage shed for grain. Often they were placed at the entrances to the farms. The flared walls have nothing to do with the function, it was just a way for the family to show passersby that the farm was rich.
At Storforsen, one of Europe's largest unregulated rapids, there is a forestry and rafting museum in an area that is of national interest for cultural environmental conservation in Norrbotten. In the unique forestry environment, there are also facilities and remains after the floating.
The forestry museum was opened in 1972, a year after the area by the rapids became a nature reserve. The museum depicts the development of forestry up to mechanization in the 1950s. The floating museum was opened in 1992 to complement the river's importance for the transport and floating of timber.
The museum consists of 17 authentic buildings. They have all been moved here from different places in Norrbotten and have been used in forestry and rafting. When the museum was built, objects, implements and tools were also collected that were used by forest workers and boatmen from the end of the 1800th century until mechanization in the 1950s.
The buildings on the museum grounds have been left to their fate for many years by the previous area manager. It has left its mark and many are today in urgent need of measures.
Norrbotten's museum therefore took over the care during 2020/2021 and a few years later work began on a care and maintenance plan for all the buildings in the area. With it as a basis, the restoration work has now begun. Gradually, the buildings will be repaired, mended and restored in collaboration with craftsmen and Älvsbyn folk high school.
The purpose of UNESCO's World Heritage Convention is to protect the cultural and natural environments that are judged to be the most valuable from an international perspective.
In Sweden, fifteen natural and cultural heritage sites are currently on UNESCO's World Heritage List. Three of the world heritage sites are located in Norrbotten: Gammelstad's church town, Laponia and Struve's meridian arc.
Gammelstad's church town became a world heritage site in 1996, with its cultural-historical buildings in the form of a late medieval stone church, 404 church cottages and six stables.
The justification for the decision to declare Gammelstad's church town a world heritage site was:
"Gammelstad's church town is an outstanding example of the traditional church town found in northern Scandinavia. It illustrates in an extraordinary way the adaptation of traditional town planning to the special geographical and climatological conditions that prevail in a difficult natural environment."
Virtual tour in Gammelstad's church town
The area became a world heritage site in 1996, as a result of both its natural and cultural values.
The justification for the decision to declare Laponia a World Heritage Site was:
"The area is an outstanding example of how the earth has developed above all geologically, and how ecological and biological changes are taking place today. Here there are outstanding natural phenomena of exceptional natural beauty as well as important natural premises to protect biological diversity. The area, which since prehistoric times has been inhabited by the Sami, is one of the best-preserved examples of the nomadic area in northern Scandinavia.It contains settlements and pastures for large reindeer herds, a custom that goes back to an early stage in man's economic and social development."
Struve's meridian arch was declared a world heritage site in 2005.
The meridian arc consists of 265 measuring points between Hammerfest in Norway and Izmail on the Black Sea. The purpose of the measurement points was to prove that latitudes become shorter at greater distances from the equator. This means that the earth is not completely spherical, but rather oval. The Earth's rotation affects the poles so that they flatten as the Earth's mass is pulled towards the equator.
The world heritage is a technical-scientific cultural heritage and includes 34 of the measurement points. They are distinguished by drilled holes, stone mounds, iron crosses or obelisks. There are four of the measuring points in Sweden. They are located on the mountains Tynnyrilaki, Jupukka, Pullinki and Perävaara. These mountains are located in the municipalities of Haparanda, Kiruna, Pajala and Övertorneå.
Here we have collected questions and answers about building maintenance. If you have questions about painting, window renovation, wood stoves or anything else related to building maintenance, you may find the answer below. If not, don't hesitate to contact one of Norrbotten's museum's building antiquarians.
I have a timber building that was painted with acrylic paint in the 1970s. Most of the acrylic paint has come off. Is it possible to paint with mud paint directly on? Or do you have any other tips?
Mud paint adheres best to clean wood, unplaned surfaces. It is possible to paint with mud paint on the surface, but if the acrylate remains, it will come off in the same way as before. We recommend that you remove as much of the acrylate as possible before painting with mud paint. Leave the color that is really stuck. Eventually, the acrylate paint is phased out and you get a completely mud-colored surface.
We will paint the facade of the house in an off white color, with chrome oxide green window frames. We do not want to paint with linseed oil paint given the long drying time. Are there other good alternatives, such as mud paint?
White mud paint is only sold for breaking with other colors as it can quickly become ugly in its color. It is therefore better to use linseed oil paint, even if the drying time is longer. Linseed oil paint is natural and environmentally friendly, and ages beautifully and is easy to maintain. Linseed oil's small molecules allow it to effectively penetrate the wood fibers and protect the wood from rotting.
I want to paint kitchen cabinets with white linseed oil paint. What is recommended for paint that also gets a hard surface, can be wiped off and is environmentally friendly?
Linseed oil paint is perfect for kitchen doors. Mix in 5-10 percent linseed oil varnish in the color when final ironing and it will be harder. Or you mix in 25 percent linseed oil varnish and then get a glaze. The surface is easy to clean with a damp cloth. If the cabinets are also to be painted inside, the color should be darkened slightly because it will turn yellow in the dark cabinets. More information can be found in the question "Does a linseed oil color turn yellow?"
Does a linseed oil paint turn yellow?
No yellowing occurs outdoors. Indoors, in rooms with daylight, the color yellows slightly, but in rooms without light, linseed oil color yellows strongly. A surface that has yellowed in the dark regains its light color if it is exposed to light.
We have a baker's cottage on the farm from around the turn of the century, with double doors that are very dry. How should we take care of these? Do they need to be oiled, scraped, painted? It looks like they were once painted yellow.
First, you scrape off loose paint. After that, we recommend an oiling. Brush on raw, cold-pressed linseed oil and let soak for 30 minutes. Then wipe off excess oil. Repeat the procedure if the wood has absorbed all the oil. If you then choose to paint, a linseed oil paint is recommended. One suggestion is golden ocher yellow, which has probably been on the door before. Other suggestions are chrome oxide green, English red or carbon black grey. If there are other old houses in the area, you can take inspiration from their doors.
We are thinking of changing the panels on our functional house. Is there any point in trying to save the old panel under the plastic paint?
If large parts of the panel are in good condition under the acrylic paint, it may be worth keeping. If only certain parts are rotten, you can replace them and leave the remaining panel as is, because older wood is usually of better quality than today's. Feel the facade with a knife. If the core seems hard, the wood is healthy. Feel for a little extra at the bottom of the planks and under window sections, where moisture-related problems are more likely to occur.
I'm going to putty windows this summer and of course want to use natural materials. The old putty that partially remains is synthetic. Do I have to peel off all the old putty, or is it enough to supplement with linseed oil putty where the old has cracked and fallen down?
You should remove all synthetic putty before applying the natural and oily linseed oil putty. Use a tuning iron with a small pulley. It is also fine to use an ordinary small tuning iron. Please practice on a window first, as it is easy for the glass to crack before you have found the technique.
I'm going to renovate my windows. They are in good condition except for peeling paint and dry wood. I don't know what kind of color it is. The flakes come off in large pieces and are easy to break off. I was thinking of using linseed oil putty and linseed oil paint. Can I paint with linseed oil paint over the old paint?
The old paint is most likely an alkyd oil paint as it is flaking in large pieces. If the flakes had been smaller and more square, it would probably have been linseed oil paint. In order for the linseed oil paint to penetrate the wood, it is best to remove the alkyd oil paint before painting the windows with the new paint.
Should you use boiled or raw linseed oil to oil the windows before they are painted?
Use raw cold-pressed linseed oil if you oil the frames before the primer. The linseed oil has small molecules that penetrate nicely into the wood.
Which white window color should you have for a dark red house? A neutral white, or with refraction?
In the past, it was common for the white paint to change color when the colors were mixed by the painter. We recommend an off-white (NCS S-0502-Y) or a gray color for your pale red house. A chalky white color is easily perceived as very white in contrast to the red facade.
I have a fireplace that could use some care. What color should I use?
The paint used for fireplaces is traditionally lime paint, also called chalk. But some bricks have also been painted with adhesive paint. Chalk paint is known to chalk, so if you don't want to risk getting white clothes, you can use a matte linseed oil paint.
How to repair plaster damage on a fireplace?
Most of the time, fireplace damage is not as dangerous as it may seem. Minor damage can be repaired with sand putty. If the damage is larger, knock off the loose plaster. Finally, you polish the surface with lime mortar.
I have a question about non-contemporary details. Should I replace the light yellow refractory brick from the 1960s with a more contemporary one?
Even newer time layers may be worth preserving. It depends on how well implemented the addition/change is based on function, proportions, quality and aesthetics.
My iron stove has quite large rust spots and is quite gray in colour. There is no clay on top of the oven part and also the ashtray. Do you have any tips on how I should renovate it?
Carefully brush off rust on the iron stove with steel wool or a soft wire brush. Also brush off the old mud. Then mix fireproof clay (follow the instructions on the bucket) and place the clay on the young fence. The clay needs to dry for a few days before you can start the fire. In order for the iron stove to turn black again, use pitch black, preferably with a base of linseed oil, which provides good protection. Use a cloth or sponge when applying it. Remember that linseed oil can self-ignite the rags! You can find spare parts for your stove in well-stocked building care stores and in stores that sell wood stoves.
Next to my fireplace I have a mosaic floor with broken pieces. Can it be fixed?
If you have leftover mosaics of the same type, you can replace the broken pieces. Otherwise, you can fill in the missing pieces with a mortar. If you want to make it look nice, you can color in the repair, or paint directly on with a color that goes with the mosaic. The Japanese art form Kintsugi aims to enhance an object's value through its repairs. Maybe you can find inspiration in that technique.
Our house's foundation has already been fixed with house fixes, not pretty at all. Should you repair cracks with mortar?
To repair the cracking, you first need to find out what the original mortar is made of. The basic principle is to repair cracks with a mortar whose aggregate and hardness are consistent with the existing mortar. If the substrate sands when you scratch it lightly with a screwdriver or something else hard, it is most likely a lime mortar. If it is lime mortar, knock off the house fixer and brush away all loose material. Then cook with pure lime mortar (sand, water and lime). No mortar reinforced with cement! Water the cleaned surface with clean water so that the mortar does not dry too quickly against the substrate.
I have an upper floor in a house from the 1800th century that needs to be tidied up. The walls are timbered and have panels on the outside. I was thinking of improving from the inside by sanding and then clay dressing directly on the timber. First clay plaster in the spaces where I sanded, and in the next step clay plaster the entire wall. Does that sound reasonable? Do I need a net or similar, or is it possible to drive directly onto the timber? Can I wallpaper or paint directly on the clay lining or is some kind of board required?
It sounds like a good order to first ease, then clay the cracks and then go on the large surfaces. Timber has good adhesion. Traditionally, the timber is split up with an ax to increase the adhesion, and then clay plastered directly on. You can use that method, but it can be both heavy and unnecessary to chip in the dry and old timber. Then it may be wise to install a galvanized wall netting (chicken netting) which is instead attached with slats or the like. When painting or wallpapering − make sure that the clay coating has dried properly. It is fine to paint directly on the clay, then use glue paint, chalk paint, linseed oil reinforced glue paint or emulsion paint such as tempera. If you choose to wallpaper, first coat the surfaces with wallpaper paste.
We have been advised to additionally insulate our house in connection with panel replacement. Is this really wise, can it collect moisture in the house? If we choose to additionally insulate, what material should we use?
First of all, you should ask yourself why the additional insulation should be done? It is often enough to check that the house's windows and doors are working as they should, and seal first if there is a need. For example, additional insulation in the attic can be a fairly simple measure, which provides a good saving effect at low costs. Swedish building maintenance association The energy book highlights various options for additional insulation, and contains food-useful information and good tips.
If you are going to additionally insulate the house, it is important that you use natural insulation that breathes, for example linen insulation. If the additional insulation is to be done from the outside, it is a good idea to also move the windows out into the new facade life as it gives the building a better overall impression.
When should the ventilation hatches in the stone foundation be opened?
The ventilation hatches can be opened when the temperature in the foundation of the house is higher than the air temperature outside. It is often a bad idea to open and aerate in early spring. The air outside is warmer than the foundation of the house, which has cooled down after winter. Warm air has a greater ability to carry moisture, and when it enters the cold space it can no longer hold the moisture and condensation forms. A tip is to use your nose and smell under the foundation. It is a good indicator to determine if there is a problem with moisture or not.
I have an attached cold hall/glass veranda made of loose timber. The rest of the house is timbered. The stairs to the upper floor go from the cold hallway and need to be insulated. Right now, the glass porch has single-glazed windows and simple double doors. What is more important - double-glazed windows and a new door, or to insulate with, for example, wood fiber and an interior panel? Due to the location of the stairs, there is not much room to expand. Ideally I don't want to insulate from the outside, but maybe that makes more sense?
You should review the whole to minimize thermal bridges in the construction. For a loose timber construction, wood fiber insulation works well. Also operate windows and install new sealing strips. Installing interior windows in winter is also recommended. In terms of insulation, the first few centimeters make the biggest difference, 5 centimeters can provide sufficient effect.
We have a holiday home with a log foundation and timber frame, where we had problems with bad floors and joists. Now we have redone the floors in two out of three rooms downstairs, built new joists and insulated with foam glass. In connection with that, the valves have basically been closed, which affects the indoor air. Should we install new valves in the walls instead?
A house needs ventilation to feel good. In what way has the ventilation been closed? What did the ventilation look like before? If you have rebuilt the valves so that the supply air from the foundation does not enter the house, you need to install new ventilation. Air in is put at the bottom, and air out is put at the top. The foundation also needs to be aired.
We have bought an old house and are thinking about energy efficiency. According to the previous owner, the house is insulated, but still a bit cold in the winter. Since we haven't had time to live in the house during the winter, we don't know how cold it will be. Do you have any tips on how we should think?
It is good to live in the house for a winter to determine where it gets cold. Is it from the windows, the floors or the front door? If it's cold from the windows, you can seal the gap between the window frames and the frame with window tape. You can hang a thick curtain in front of the front door. Maybe you can update the current heating system or turn down the heat in rooms that you don't use very often? There are also bigger measures you can take. To get the right advice for your particular house, you can contact an independent energy adviser, for example via the municipality. Remember that the values that your house has must remain after the measures.
We want to put a new roof on our norrbottensgård and are thinking about sheet metal. Does it fit our house? Is it better to buy unpainted sheet metal and paint it ourselves, or should we buy ready-painted?
A tin roof is very suitable for a Norrbotten garden, ready-painted or unpainted. However, a finished painted ceiling can flake over time and become quite ugly. A good idea might be to buy factory-primed sheet metal and paint the roof yourself. Then use linseed oil paint that has molecules that cause the paint to penetrate the plate. Also think about installing snow protection at the entrance, because the snow gets good speed on a tin roof.
I have an old wooden house where we are going to build a new bathroom. Now there are wooden walls (planed wooden planks) and pearl rafters where we intend to install a shower cubicle. There is a ventilation duct to the chimney, so I was thinking of putting in an exhaust fan. What do you recommend for wall and floor materials? I prefer not to put in plastic carpets and walls, but still be sure that the moisture does not creep into the house.
There are a few different solutions to choose from. You can choose tiles and clinker, which is very classic. Or is there an option to keep the pearl pontoon and paint it with linseed oil paint? Read about what applies to wooden panels in wet areas on the Housing Authority's website.
Another option is clay. Clay is one of our oldest building materials and has good hygroscopic properties that bind and release moisture. You can either combine conventional methods of moisture barrier or completely rely on the properties of the clay. Clay lining is still an unconventional method according to building codes, but there are many good examples of the method working.
For the floor, tiles, bricks or an oiled clay floor can be suitable.
I have an agricultural property from the 1800th century with an associated outbuilding. The economy building consists of a food stall with a cellar, a middle part and the old stable. Can you apply for funds to restore such? Is it interesting to preserve? The log yard at the bottom is bad and on the short side it has been taken up for a garage door.
You can apply for a grant from the County Administrative Board in Norrbotten for the most prioritized measures, such as replacing the bad sill log (the log yard at the bottom). The grant can cover extra costs, for example hiring a craftsman with cultural history expertise. There is a greater chance of receiving a grant for a building located within a designated cultural environment or visible from a street. Caring for a culturally historically interesting building can be about preserving it, or making it more accessible and useful. Does the garage door fulfill a function today? Or would the space have been more useful in its original design?
When we bought our house, we were told it was K-rated. What does it mean? Is there anything special we need to think about when we start a major renovation?
When a building is culturally and historically valuable, it can be protected with three different designations in the municipality's detailed plan:
To find out what applies to your particular house, the answer can be found in the municipality's detailed plan. Contact the building permit officers in your municipality and they will help you decipher it.
If you don't find what you're looking for here, search in the magazine Byggnadskultur's article collection.
In Norrbotten's museum image archive there are over two million images, from the 1880s until today. The collection reflects the people and the development of society in Norrbotten until today.
The diversity in the image archive is striking − landscapes, work images, documentation of objects, archaeological documentation, historical events, and more. The collections from famous photographers such as Lea Wikström and Adolf Hjort are extensive.
In the collection, the various photographic techniques are represented, from ferrotypes to today's digital images.
We are happy to accept image collections, but are restrictive towards images that lack information and where no one can provide information about the images.
The museum's image archive contains large collections of negatives from photographers who were active in Norrbotten. Some of them are Adolf Hjort, Lea Wikström, Rolf Ericson, Mia Green and Bert Persson.
Adolf Hjort was born in 1896 in Alvik. He worked at a young age as a sawmill and pulp mill worker. For a period he served as an extra teacher in Älvsbyn. He got involved politically in the Nederluleå municipal council and over time became the district's trustee and clerk.
Adolf Hjort's picture collection was created during the period 1922-1948. He photographed landscapes and buildings, people at work and parties and created a fine collection of images. The villages of Alvik and Långnäs, a couple of miles south of Luleå, were at the center of his interest. With a Stölma 2, he photographed local events, association events and family parties. The collection was handed over to Norrbotten's museum in 1975.
Lea Wikström (1888-1980) was born in Luleå. After a period as an apprentice in Henny Tegström's photo studio in Luleå, she worked as a photo assistant in southern Sweden. Around 1917-1918 she moved to Malmberget and took over Grahn's photo studio in Malmberget.
Lea Wikström worked as a photographer for over 60 years. At the beginning of the century, it was obvious that the photo apprentices would learn all the working steps, and therefore Lea also carried out all the darkroom work herself. The photographic equipment with all glass plates and negatives was handed over as a gift to the Norrbotten museum in 1978.
During her time in Uppsala, Lea Wikström often traveled to Dannemora to photograph miners. In Malmberget, she mostly worked with portrait photography, but also documented association activities, schools, bridges and roads for the road administration and more. During this time, society underwent major changes. Lea often photographed in Malmberget and its surroundings to renew and supplement her postcard collection. The business ceased in 1972 when Lea moved to Täby.
The link below will take you to a list of Lea Wikström's pictures. A few of the images are in the museum's collection database Carlotta. If you need a picture that is not in Carlotta, you can order it from us by sending an e-mail to: norrbottens.museum@norrbotten.se
Rolf Ericson was born in Luleå in 1929. Already as a young man he was interested in both art and music. The interest in art led Rolf to apply to Isaac Grünewald's art school in Stockholm, where he studied for a year. The studies were financed by working as a substitute in various orchestras. Many of the gigs were at Vinterpalatset and Nalen.
Paris and an artistic education with André Lothe beckoned. After some time in Paris, the interest in photography took over and Rolf applied for a two-year photography course in Saarbrück in Germany. When the education was finished, he went home to Sweden and got a freelance contract for Åhlén & Åkerlund where he worked for several different newspapers, including Se, Vecko-Journalen, Året runt and others. After his time at Åhlén & Åkerlund, he worked at Expressen for 6-7 years.
Reportage photographer Rolf Ericson worked as a professional photographer for 44 years. During his life as a professional photographer, he took more than 800 pictures. In 000, he donated his large picture collection to Norrbotten's museum.
When Dagens Nyheter (DN) was looking for a photographer for its national editorial office in Norrbotten, Rolf Ericson applied for the position and returned home. During 34 years as a full-time photographer for DN, he had the entire Nordkalotten as his field of work. There were many experiences, hard work and a lot of travelling.
With his camera, Rolf documented working life in the north, but also made several reporting trips abroad. In Norrbotten's museum's collection there are many pictures from the great mining strike of 1969/70, pictures of royalty on Eriksgata and pictures of Anders Andersson who lived as a hermit on Sjaunjamyren. The photo assignments entailed many and sometimes very strenuous trips on the North Calotte. The modes of transportation were not always the most comfortable; car, train, sometimes plane - but also skis, dog sled and on foot.
The donation, a fine collection of images, is registered and searchable via a subject index. Rolf Ericson retired in 1993.
The link below will take you to a list of Rolf Ericson's pictures. A few of the images are in the museum's collection database Carlotta. If you need a picture that is not in Carlotta, you can order it from us by sending an e-mail to: norrbottens.museum@norrbotten.se
Maria "Mia" Amalia Green, born in 1870, was one of the pioneers in photography in Norrbotten. Her career as a photographer began in Piteå. In 1894, she settled in Haparanda and was active in Haparanda and Tornedalen until the end of World War II.
During her more than 50 years as a photographer, she documented both everyday phenomena and world events. Many have come across her pictures from Karungi and Haparanda during the First World War (1914-1918), and the prisoner exchanges between Russia, Germany, Austria-Hungary and Turkey that took place there. Several suffered severe war injuries and the exchange of the prisoners was called "disabled transport", and is depicted in Mia Green's pictures.
Another well-known motif is the mail handling via Karungi and Haparanda during the war years. Mountains of packages, letters and dispatches from all over the world passed through these two locations.
Mia Green passed away in 1949. Her business was then sold, and the collection passed through several owners before it was acquired by the city of Haparanda in the early 1970s.
In 2022, Norrbotten's museum acquired parts of Bert Persson's picture collection, which are today owned by his wife and daughters. The collection is a unique time document from his activities as a journalist and photographer in northern Sweden, from Sundsvall and north, for 66 years.
The collection contains around one million images and Norrbotten's museum has acquired around 5000 negatives. The pictures reflect the breadth of Bert Persson's activities - the depictions he made of Sami society, associational life, the armed forces, society and business life and his activities on Nordkalotten.
Bert Persson appeared in the picture magazine Se, Expressen and in a number of other newspapers with his pictures and his pictures came to set the image of northern Sweden for many. Bert Persson lived in Luleå and died in his home at Malmudden in 2017.
I Norrbotten Museum's database Carlotta you can search for information about photographs and objects in our collections.
You can purchase images from the museum's image archive for private use, research and publication.
You only purchase the right to use the image in a specific context, which has been agreed upon at the time of purchase. It can be for private use or publication in, for example, a printed matter or exhibition. By purchasing an image, you do not acquire the copyright to the image.
Norrbotten Museum charges an administrative fee for ordered images.
Contact us for price information as follows:
Always send two copies of the publication in which the image appears to Norrbotten's museum. When publishing on the Internet, you must provide the full address of the page.
Ethnology is a cultural science that examines people's everyday life in the past and present. It is about understanding man as a cultural being and collecting people's experiences, values and beliefs to show the interaction between group and individual.
Within ethnology, Norrbotten's museum works with contemporary collections, exhibition productions and educational activities.
We use qualitative methods when collecting data - observing, writing diaries in the field and interviewing people. Sometimes we work with archival material in the form of objects, photographs and written sources.
All the material we collect is archived so that people in the future can use it and understand their history.
Pictures from the land settlement September 2024. Photo: G Rúnar Gudmundsson, Norrbotten museum.
In the future we will need more energy, and therefore energy production must increase. To protect the climate, we are switching to renewable energy sources such as sun, wind and water. In Markbygden in Piteå municipality there is Europe's largest onshore wind farm. More wind turbines are planned in Norrbotten, both on land and at sea.
Wind power plants affect both landscapes and cultural environments, and touch people in many ways. The installations arouse emotions and opinions, both positive and negative. We want to hear your story about wind power in Norrbotten.
The collection will continue until September 31, 2025.
We look forward to hearing your story!
Norrbotten Museum's mission is to document and collect information about people's lives in Norrbotten. This helps us to understand the county's history and present better. With this collection, we want to get a picture of how wind power affects people and places in Norrbotten.
Your story will appear on memories.se and saved in the museum's archives. The story can be used in the museum's exhibitions, publications, website and other activities.
If you have any questions about the collection, you can send us an email at memories@norrbotten.se
In 2009, Piteå Museum completed a documentation on Markbygden and the establishment of Sweden's largest wind farm. At the time, the company Svevind had started a project in Dragaliden where 12 wind turbines were planned. Today, Markbygden is Europe's largest land-based wind farm with around 500 wind turbines. The expansion has taken place in stages and there are still some parts before the park is completed.
It has been 15 years since Ingrid Metelius and Daryoush Tahmasebi made the documentation. We will make a return visit to follow up on whether people's fears, dreams and visions came true. What ideas were there about what the establishment would bring to the area, and how does it look today? We will conduct interviews and photographically document how the place and the cultural landscape have changed.
Work on the documentation is ongoing during the period September 2024–March 2025.
Norrbotten is a multicultural county with a long and exciting history. This is reflected in Norrbotten Museum's object collections.
The museum's collections have been added during the latter part of the 1800th century and onwards. The collection contains archaeological finds, objects from historical times and art.
The collection consists of both unique and everyday objects that represent different eras. Through the objects, we get stories about the first people who lived here in the north, up to today's people. There is almost 11 years between the oldest and youngest objects.
We currently have limited opportunities to handle donation offers to the museum. Therefore, we have paused the collection of cultural historical objects for the entire year of 2025.
For those of you who want to see our object collections, we are happy to show them, either if you come alone or with a group. If there is something in particular you want to look at or delve into, we will do our best to help you.
If you want to book an appointment for a visit, you can contact us as follows:
Do you have questions about objects or want to know more about something in our collections? You are welcome to get in touch in the following ways:
Norrbotten Museum's collections are a knowledge bank. To a large extent, it has been built up through gifts from individuals.
We currently have limited opportunities to handle donation offers to the museum. Therefore, we have paused the collection of cultural historical objects for the entire year of 2025.
I Norrbotten Museum's database Carlotta you can search for information about objects and photographs in our collections. We continuously update the database with images and information so that you can take part in the collection digitally.
If you have more information about something in the database, you can write it in the comment field next to the object or photograph.
