Neat Stuff in Oslo August 30, 2006
Holly has cautioned me that I may be getting a tad cynical and I should stick to the positive aspects of our tour of Norway. I will do that after reporting that while checking several shops, the lowest price we found for a man’s haircut was US$65 and US$80 for a woman’s.
Today was set aside for fun museums of Oslo. By that I mean museums that the subject matter is interesting, focused and compact. Museums in which you would normally spend an hour to an hour and a half get maximum enjoyment and minimum standing fatigue.
The Viking Ship Museum
This museum houses the three oldest Viking ships ever found. The building is built in the shape of a cross and as you walk in at the end of the long leg you are greeted by the graceful upswept bow of a large wooden boat of typical Viking longboat design entombed in the arched white masonry of the museum. It is an impressive sight.
The three ships housed here were all found in the Oslofjord area and all ended their careers as burial ships. The ships were buried in peat and clay which prevents oxygen from reaching the wood and why the wood is so well preserved. All three ships contained items that the Vikings would have considered necessary for the voyage to the afterlife, such as food, cooking utensils, tents and personal effects as well as the bodies of those making the voyage.
The Oseberg ship, the one that you see as you enter the building, is the most well preserved and is thought to be the burial site of Queen Asa the only known Viking queen of the era. The ship is gracefully designed and looks as though it was more intended for pleasure rather than looting and pillaging the coasts of Europe. It is 22 meters (73’) long and was rowed by a crew of thirty. This is probably the oldest of the three ships.
The Tune ship the least preserved requires a little imagination to see it as it once was. It was excavated in 1867 and the lack of knowledge of archeological excavation and preservation may have contributed to its current state.
The Gokstad ship needs no imagination to see that it was built to sail the high seas and raid distant coast. A heavier built and deeper draft vessel than the other two it was manned by thirty two oarsmen and rigged with a classic square sail. It is 24 meters (80’) long and the upturned ends are simple and without decoration.
The Kon-Tiki Museum
The museum is dedicated to the life and work of Thor Heyerdahl. It struck a cord with me as I remember Heyerdahl’s Ra I and II expeditions from when I was a boy and that he was already well known at that time from the Kon-Tiki expedition. The museum houses the original balsa raft from The Kon-Tiki expedition and the papyrus boat from the Ra II expedition. Heyerdahl’s theory that civilization spread across from west to east was fostered by similarities in culture and technology in early cultures. This is a museum that you can enjoy and pays tribute not only to a great mind but also to the man that was willing to put his theories to the ultimate test.
The Fram Museum
The Fram although unknown to most of us from the US is a historic small ship that had an important roll in both Arctic and Antarctic exploration. She is a wooden hulled sailing vessel that was originally built around 1890 and fitted with an auxiliary steam engine. The Fram was heavily built to withstand the stress and strains of polar work. Along with numerous other voyages to help chart and explore the colder regions of the world the two voyages below are her most well known.
From 1893 to 1896 she was locked in the northern pack ice and drifted within a few degrees of the North Pole before being released after drifting across the Arctic Ocean. A first that helped the turn of the century scientist understand the ocean currents and prove that the polar north is water with no land mass. She carried a crew of 12 and provisions for five years on this voyage. She is the only conventional vessel (meaning except ice breakers) to reach this far north.
Her next famous voyage in 1911 was to deliver Roald Amundsen to the Ross Ice Shelf for his successful attempt to be the first to reach the South Pole. This was half of the great race to the pole that proved disastrous to Robert Scott and his team.
The amazing thing is that Fram is now housed in this museum and is in remarkable shape after all that she has been through. We were allowed to go into the ship where equipment from the polar expeditions is on display.
After the museum tours we took a ferry across the fjord and enjoyed the fine weather and views of Oslo. We had a late lunch on the quay just a couple of hundred yards from the hall where the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded after which we strolled back to the hotel. We are researching the next legs of the trip and this takes some time as it means a jump from Scandinavian so we are in the room for a few hours but since I’m still resting my knee whenever possible that’s OK.
Today was set aside for fun museums of Oslo. By that I mean museums that the subject matter is interesting, focused and compact. Museums in which you would normally spend an hour to an hour and a half get maximum enjoyment and minimum standing fatigue.
The Viking Ship Museum
This museum houses the three oldest Viking ships ever found. The building is built in the shape of a cross and as you walk in at the end of the long leg you are greeted by the graceful upswept bow of a large wooden boat of typical Viking longboat design entombed in the arched white masonry of the museum. It is an impressive sight.
The three ships housed here were all found in the Oslofjord area and all ended their careers as burial ships. The ships were buried in peat and clay which prevents oxygen from reaching the wood and why the wood is so well preserved. All three ships contained items that the Vikings would have considered necessary for the voyage to the afterlife, such as food, cooking utensils, tents and personal effects as well as the bodies of those making the voyage.
The Oseberg ship, the one that you see as you enter the building, is the most well preserved and is thought to be the burial site of Queen Asa the only known Viking queen of the era. The ship is gracefully designed and looks as though it was more intended for pleasure rather than looting and pillaging the coasts of Europe. It is 22 meters (73’) long and was rowed by a crew of thirty. This is probably the oldest of the three ships.
The Tune ship the least preserved requires a little imagination to see it as it once was. It was excavated in 1867 and the lack of knowledge of archeological excavation and preservation may have contributed to its current state.
The Gokstad ship needs no imagination to see that it was built to sail the high seas and raid distant coast. A heavier built and deeper draft vessel than the other two it was manned by thirty two oarsmen and rigged with a classic square sail. It is 24 meters (80’) long and the upturned ends are simple and without decoration.
The Kon-Tiki Museum
The museum is dedicated to the life and work of Thor Heyerdahl. It struck a cord with me as I remember Heyerdahl’s Ra I and II expeditions from when I was a boy and that he was already well known at that time from the Kon-Tiki expedition. The museum houses the original balsa raft from The Kon-Tiki expedition and the papyrus boat from the Ra II expedition. Heyerdahl’s theory that civilization spread across from west to east was fostered by similarities in culture and technology in early cultures. This is a museum that you can enjoy and pays tribute not only to a great mind but also to the man that was willing to put his theories to the ultimate test.
The Fram Museum
The Fram although unknown to most of us from the US is a historic small ship that had an important roll in both Arctic and Antarctic exploration. She is a wooden hulled sailing vessel that was originally built around 1890 and fitted with an auxiliary steam engine. The Fram was heavily built to withstand the stress and strains of polar work. Along with numerous other voyages to help chart and explore the colder regions of the world the two voyages below are her most well known.
From 1893 to 1896 she was locked in the northern pack ice and drifted within a few degrees of the North Pole before being released after drifting across the Arctic Ocean. A first that helped the turn of the century scientist understand the ocean currents and prove that the polar north is water with no land mass. She carried a crew of 12 and provisions for five years on this voyage. She is the only conventional vessel (meaning except ice breakers) to reach this far north.
Her next famous voyage in 1911 was to deliver Roald Amundsen to the Ross Ice Shelf for his successful attempt to be the first to reach the South Pole. This was half of the great race to the pole that proved disastrous to Robert Scott and his team.
The amazing thing is that Fram is now housed in this museum and is in remarkable shape after all that she has been through. We were allowed to go into the ship where equipment from the polar expeditions is on display.
After the museum tours we took a ferry across the fjord and enjoyed the fine weather and views of Oslo. We had a late lunch on the quay just a couple of hundred yards from the hall where the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded after which we strolled back to the hotel. We are researching the next legs of the trip and this takes some time as it means a jump from Scandinavian so we are in the room for a few hours but since I’m still resting my knee whenever possible that’s OK.
posted by Gary and Holly Davis @ 8:19 AM
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