Norwegian Museum of Cultural History

Historie

Norsk Folkemuseum, at Bygdøy, Oslo, Norway, 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.The Norwegian Museum of Cultural History is situated on the Bygdøy peninsula near several other museums, including the Viking Ship Museum; the Fram Museum; the Kon-Tiki Museum; and the Norwegian Maritime Museum.HistoryNorsk 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 relocated buildings, with the Gol Stave Church in the centre, is recognized as the world's first open-air museum, founded in 1881.Hans Aall was the director until his death in 1946. Under his leadership the museum experienced a substantial growth of its area, staff, collections, buildings and number of visitors. Reidar Kjellberg became Director of the museum in 1947 and remained museum director until he retired, in 1974. From 1990 until 2000, Erik Rudeng was the director. The director since 2001 is Olav Aaraas.