West-Telemark Museum Eidsborg

Vest-Telemark Museum Eidsborg offers a modern museum building, a yard with over 30 houses, one of the world's oldest wooden buildings, Stålekleivloftet from 1184, and not least the historic Eidsborg Stave Church, which can now be dated back to the 12th century. The museum is a fantastic starting point for experiencing Vest-Telemark's rich cultural history.

The museum is strategically located along County Road 450, right next to the Eidsborg Stave Church and the historic Vindlaus farms.

In the modern museum building, which opened in June 2012, you will find a café, museum shop, and rich exhibitions. In addition to the museum, you can experience various offers for children, events, and concerts, or walk one of the prepared hiking trails starting from the courtyard.

Cultural History Highlights:

• Folk Art and Handicrafts: The exhibitions convey Vest-Telemark's cultural history and feature inspiring folk art, including Rosemaling (traditional decorative painting) and one of Norway's finest knife exhibitions. We also feature varied temporary exhibitions.
• Energy and Industrial History: The history of the Tokke Power Plant complex, an important part of Norwegian power history, is presented in a separate exhibition, in addition to Statkraft's own visitor center which also talks about alternative, clean energy production. (Read more: The power that changed Vest-Telemark)
• The Export Adventure – The Whetstone: The story of the unique whetstone is told; from the early Viking Age, whetstones were exported from the quarries in Eidsborg to Europe. The waterway down to Skien was the transport route, and the Eidsborg whetstone quickly became an important part of the North Sea trade and is regarded as one of our first export articles.

The museum area includes an activity park with a 105-meter long model of the Telemark Canal and a cotter's farm with various craft activities. This area is open between June 15 and August 15.

In our farmyards, you can learn about the building traditions of Vest-Telemark. The log construction technique, in particular, has been dominant here. We have log-building sets where children and adults can try their hand at building their own miniature log houses.

Our café is open every day during the main season. The rest of the year, we welcome groups by appointment. We serve traditional and modern dishes, all prepared in our kitchen. If you wish to host parties, conferences, meetings, or courses, we have excellent premises at reasonable prices. We also offer catering services.

Do you enjoy hiking, and perhaps want to learn some history along the way? From the museum courtyard in Eidsborg, there are several prepared trails adapted to your fitness level and condition. (Read more here: The Whetstone Hike, The Rui Farm)

Outside of opening hours, guided tours for groups can be booked all year round, weather permitting.