Historisk museum sett fra SAS-bygget
.
I 1897 vedtok Stortinget å bygge en ny museumsbygning for
Universitetets Oldsaksamling, Universitetets etnografiske museum og
Myntkabinettet.
Hver av disse har sin egen historie frem til de flyttet sammen i
det nye historiske museet på Tullinløkka som åpnet for publikum i
1904.
Historisk museum har aldri vært noen egen museumsorganisasjon, men
en museumsbygning for tre museer. I 1999 ble Oldsaksamlingen (med
Vikingskipshuset), Myntkabinettet og Etnografisk museum slått
sammen til en organisasjon; Universitetets kulturhistoriske museer.
I 2004 ble navnet endret til Kulturhistorisk museum, Universitetet
i Oslo.
Historisk museum er Oslos flotteste monumentale bygning i
Jugendstil og ett av de viktigste innefor denne stilretningen i
Norge. Det er tegnet av arkitekt Henrik Bull som også tegnet
Finansdepartementet. Bygget er verneverdig og underlagt
Riksantikvarens myndighetsområde når det gjelder bygningsmessige
inngrep.
In 1897 the Norwegian Parliament (Stortinget) passed a
resolution approving the construction of a new museum building to
house the University's Museum of Antiquities, the University
Ethnographical museum and the Coin Cabinet. Each of these has their
own particular history up until the time when they moved in
together in the new Historical Museum at Tullinløkka, which opened
to the public in 1904.
The Historical Museum has never been a separate museum
organisation of its own, rather a museum building housing three
museums.
In 1999 the Museum of Antiquities (together with the Viking Ship
Museum), Coin Cabinet and Ethnographical Museum combined into a
single organisation: the University Museums of Cultural
History.
In 2004 the organisation changed its name to Museum of Cultural
History, University of Oslo.
The Historical Museum is Oslo's grandest monumental building, and
is one of the most significant examples of the Jugend architectural
style to be found in Norway. It was designed by the architect
Henrik Bull who also designed the building for the Ministry of
Finance. The building has been officially declared a protected
building and is under the jurisdiction of the Norwegian Directorate
for Cultural Heritage with regard to any proposed alterations to
its construction.
In the Historical Museum you will find on the first floor the
exhibition "From the Ice Age until Christianity "; on display are
artefacts that tell of people's lives in Norway throughout the
course of 9000 years, dating back to and including the Viking Era.
In the first floor you also find the Treasure Chest, an exhibition
of gold and silver treasures from all over the country and every
time period. Lastly, on the first floor is the Medieval Exhibition
designed by architect Sverre Fehn in 1979. The exhibition is
primarily a church exhibition, with among other things the Ål stave
church chancel ceiling from the 14th century as one of its main
attractions. The exhibition also includes figurative sculptures,
stave church portals and a number of everyday objects.
On the second floor of the museum you will find the Ethnographic
Exhibitions and the Coin Cabinet. Here the museum's new, small
collection of antiques is also to be found, with objects from
ancient Greece and the Roman Empire. From here visitors move on
into the Arctic with an exhibition on indigenous populations in
Polar Regions. Roald Amundsen met the Netsilik Inuits and spent the
winter with them in 1904-1905. A large number of Amundsen\'s
photographs and artefacts from this stay are on display in this
exhibition. From the Arctic the journey continues on to Indian
tribes in South and North America. The innermost room of this floor
is dedicated to the Coin Cabinet. The Coin Cabinet displays
Norwegian coins from throughout a 1000-year period. The third floor
of the museum is allocated to special exhibitions and African
cultures. The African Exhibition is built up around different
themes. The artefacts are gathered from many countries and from
many different periods and combined together in a dynamic whole.
There are two rooms for special exhibitions on the floor. Each year
from two to four exhibitions are held on different themes.
In the fourth floor is the exhibition from East Asia and Japan,
China and Korea. This exhibition is designed for reflection and
in-depth study. Here you can see Chinese Emperors\' thrones, a
Japanese Bridal palanquin, the Samurais\' weapon and armour
traditions and Buddha figures. The Museum also has a large and
newly renovated museum shop with books, post cards, posters,
jewellery and souvenirs.