Top 8 classic historical museums in Norway

These hints from insider Ragnhild Martine Bø will lead you to high-quality historical museums all over Norway.

Ragnhild Martine Bø, art historian and postdoctoral researcher at The Institute of archeology, conservation, and history in Oslo, is the person to ask for guidance to some of Norway’s key historical museums.

A glimpse into Norway’s past

You will find good exhibitions all over the country that are suitable regardless of your prior knowledge.

Ragnhild Martine Bø.
Photo: Ragnhild Martine Bø

Numerous famous and rare objects on display tell the story of the country’s development. These places’ fresh and modern approach to architecture and presentation makes the past come alive.

A building full of history

The Historical Museum in Oslo is the fast track to a deeper knowledge of the origins of Norwegians. It is also a visual guide to the unexpected development of the Norwegian society from rather poor and self-sufficient to far more independent and international.

The Vikings were here

The Viking Ship Museum in Oslo is among the most visited exhibitions in Norway. The wooden vessels from the 9th century are flanked by numerous objects that reveal everyday life in the Viking Age. The museum also shows that the history of the Vikings has many layers, and it captures our imagination and curiosity.

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An invitation to the Archbishops residence

The Archbishop’s palace museum in Trondheim is part of the site of the Nidaros Dome. In the early 1990s, a fire destroyed some of the wooden buildings and a new and airy museum was built. A result of the construction was unseen archeological finds that have substantially enriched the collection of the museum.

Ragnhild Martine Bø.
Photo: Ragnhild Martine Bø

About Ragnhild Martine Bø

Ragnhild Martine Bø is an art historian and a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Archeology, Conservation and History at the University of Oslo.

The story of the coastal culture

The Museum of Archaeology in Stavanger tells the story about the region way before it got world-famous for its petrol industry. People have been living here for a long, long time, and the proofs are in the museum’s collection of numerous everyday objects.

Stavanger.
Photo: Arkeologisk Museum

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Varangerbotn.
Photo: Várjjat Sámi Musea

Bergen through the ages

The extensive exhibition of Bergen Historical Museum runs from the Age of Antiquity to the present. If you are into archeology and ethnography, you will find entire collections that witness the progress of the special way of life in the Stavanger region, including – of course – the Viking culture. The section of church art is considered to be the most important in Norway.

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Explore Norway’s history

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Classic historical museums

Historical Museum

The largest collection of items from pre-historic times and the Middle Ages found in Norway. Read more

Historical Museum

The Viking Ship Museum

Museum on the Bygdøy peninsula with the world's best-preserved Viking ships and finds from Viking tombs around the Oslo Fjord. The… Read more

The Viking Ship Museum

Borgund Stave church

Built around 1180 and is dedicated to the Apostle Andrew. The church is exceptionally well preserved and is one of the most distinctive stave churches… Read more

Borgund Stave church

Nidaros Cathedral

Nidaros Cathedral is the world’s northernmost gothic cathedral. Built from 1070 over the tomb of St. Olav, the Viking king who brought Christianity to… Read more

Nidaros Cathedral

Universitetsmuseet i Bergen - The Historical Museum

Collections ranging form the Age of antiquity and the Middle Ages right up to the present day. West Norway is particularly well represented.… Read more

Universitetsmuseet i Bergen - The Historical Museum

Eidsvoll 1814 - Norwegian Center for Constitution

Eidsvollbygningen is a house full of exciting history. For Norwegians it is one of the most important national symbols, inextricably tied to the… Read more

Eidsvoll 1814 - Norwegian Center for Constitution

Eidsvoll 1814

Kafé Standpunkt - is a modern coffeehouse inspired by the coffeehouse traditions that were established in Europe during the 17thcentury. In Madame… Read more

Eidsvoll 1814

Offbeat historical museums

Let Trond Schøning from Blomqvist auction house introduce you to his favourite alternative historical museums.

Read more about the offbeat museums

The Glomdal Museum

The Glomdal Museum is one of the country's largest open-air museums, and displays a four hundred year-old period of building- and living tradition in… Read more

The Glomdal Museum

Breidablikk

The mansion Breidablikk was built in wood by the architect, Henrik Nissen, in 1881. The owner was the merchant and shipowner Lars Berentsen, one of… Read more

Breidablikk

Old Bergen Museum - Bergen City Museum

The open-air Old Bergen Museum is a reconstructed small town consisting of around 50 wooden houses dating from the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. Read more

Old Bergen Museum - Bergen City Museum

Damsgård Country Mansion - Bergen City Museum

Damsgård Country Mansion was erected in the 18th C. It is perhaps Europe's best preserved wooden Rococco building with the original interior. Read more

Damsgård Country Mansion - Bergen City Museum

Norwegian Glacier Museum

The Norwegian Glacier Museum opened in 1991, and is an award-winning hands-on museum, situated in Fjærland at the head of the Fjærlandsfjord. The… Read more

Norwegian Glacier Museum