Historical Museum, Oslo

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There was a strike in Norway when I visited the Historical museum in June 2012, so only the first and third floor were open to public :( I was visiting with an Oslo pass, but due to the strike the entrance to the museum was free.

The museum is housed in a beautiful building in the very center of Oslo, behind the University, and opened in 1904.

The museum is on 4 floors, and it would take a couple of hours to walk through all the exhibitions. The floors that were closed were the Ancient Egyptian art section and East-Asia. But I got to see the Africa section and the fantastic exhibitions on the life of Norwegians through 10.000 years - which was quite impressive. There were graves of rich women and The Chamber of treasures which show the most important Viking treasures. So there was quite a lot of gold there, to say the least, and coins and medals. There is a lot of Viking history there. And a section which depicts the Old Norse belief in quite a funny way with rag dolls ;)

The exhibitions are divided into Prehistoric Norway, Medieval Norway, The Treasure Chest and The Coin Cabinet. Also belonging to this museum is The Viking ship museum in Bygdöy (see my tip).

On the upper floor there was an exhibition "Don´t measure me" which was art from Sri Lanka. And an excellent Horse exhibition, which was quite interesting, showing very decorative saddlery which was found in the Viking ship graves. And more artefacts from the Oseberg and Gokstad Viking ships.

Opening hours: Tuesday-Sunday 10-17 (summer time) 11-16 (winter time)

Admission fee: NOK 50.

This museum is not to be missed when visiting Oslo.

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The Historical Museum (Historisk museum) comprises:
The Antiquities Collection (Universitetets Oldsakssamling) - Norwegian antiquities from the Stone Age to the Middle Ages including the outstanding Viking Age and Medieval collections. Guided tours during summer season.
The Collection of Coins and Medals (Myntkabinettet) - The coin cabinet is exhibiting Norwegian coins and banknotes.
The Etnographic Museum (Etnografisk Museum) - The Ethnographic collections including displays from around the Arctic Circle, Africa and the Americas.

The museum is closed: Mondays, 1 Jan., Good Friday, Easter Eve, Easter Sunday, Easter Monday, 1. May, 17. May, 24-26 Dec. and 31 Dec.

This museum of cultural heritage of the university of Oslo is home to an exhibition on ethnology issues, a collection of antiquities with lots of items from the Vikings and a collection of coins and medals.

This museum has got very important objects from all the country. You can see holy objects: sculputers made with wood and paintings of the 13th century. In the Skattesal, the room of the treasury, you can see fantastic gold and silver jewels. It has got the most important collection of old coins of all Norway.

Three museums in one: Museum of National Antiquities Collection (Oldsaksamlingen)
Has Viking treasures and medieval religious art; 2nd level arctic exhibit and Collection of Coins and Medals (Myntkabinettet) which holds a collection of Norwegian coins from as early as 995AD. Also on the 3rd floor is the Ethnographic Museum (Etnografisk Museum) which has exhibits on Africa, America, and Asia. Designed by Henrik Bull and completed in 1902. The information is typically in Norwegian, English and German

Adult 40 child free; free with Oslo pass
10am-2p Tu/Th, 11a-2p Su

UNDER CONSTRUCTION!!!!!

Kongsberg, an easy day trip out of Oslo by train (preferably) or bus is a small town of some20 000 inhabitants, but of disproportionate importance as a jazz city. This little town attracts world class jazz musicians and a discerning audience for its 1st weekend of July Kongsberg Jazz Festival each year. As a small town, the netire place is jazz-marked during the week and weekend. Intimate, you get the musicians and their music real close up. Small jazz cult sales booths pop up, restaurants have jazz menu specials and generally it's a good time in town.

Kongsberg also is the silver mining town of Norway. Check the Kongsberg web site for further info. The name is Norsk Bergverksmuseum. A little mining train brings you into the now non-operational silver mining complex. Opening hours: 10-17. Cafe and museum shop on the premises.

Here is also the Royal Mint of Norway with a museum.

Kongsberg is also an alpine skiing town in winter, againg convenient location as a day trip destination from Oslo.

Tie Historisk Museum of the University of Odo, Prederiks gate 2, is actually a bunch of three museums under a single roof.

The ground-floor antiquities collection has exceptional displays of (mostly local) Viking and Middle Age coins, ornaments and weapons, as well as a medieval church art section that includes the richly painted ceiling of a 13th-century stave church.

The 2nd floor has a numismatic collection of coins dating from 995, while the top floor holds ethnographical displays on non-European cultures.
Opening hours are 10 am (11 am in winter) to 4 pm Tuesday to Sunday (free).

If you love museums or not, you have to come to the Historical Museum! It's a very interesting museum - recently reorganized, archeologists gathered together with artists and teachers and professors to choose the best way the elements should be displayed and presented. The result is a very lively, dynamic and fluent museum ride - not the usual piece-of-stone and four-pages-long-of-explaining-text! Just go there and check it out for yourself! AND It's free!

This Musuem is dedicated to Norway's history from Viking times to the modern era. It also includes culutral exhibits from around the world.

There are three part in this museum :
Viking and middle age collections – Numismatic collection – Ethnographic collections