Olavinlinna, a castle far north

Olavinlinna (St. Olaf's Castle) is a 15th century castle located in Savonlinna, Finland. It is the world's most northern fortress (61°51′N, 28°54′E) .

The fortress was founded in 1475 by a Danish knight, and served to repel russian attacks from the east and to guarantee control of the region for the Swedish Crown.

The castle forms a spectacular stage for the Savonlinna Opera Festival, held annually in the summer since 1912.

Olavinlinna is the initial model for Kropow Castle in the comic book King Ottokar's Sceptre, an album in the series of Adventures of Tintin created by Hergé.

Icey Hand of God

The Gull Glacier ("Hand of God") at Tanquary Fiord, Quttinirpaaq (=“the land most at the top”) National Park, Ellesmere island, Canada.

Most of Ellesmere island is a polar desert, deeply incised by fiords, with a stunning scenery of glaciers, mountains and nunataks, including Lake Hazen, the world's largest lake north of the Arctic Circle.

The rare vegetation of its snow-free areas supports herds of musk oxen, caribou, and polar bears, as well as the Arctic hare and birds such as the Artic Tern and Owl; marine mammals also abound at the shores.

The first inhabitants of Ellesmere Island were small groups of Inuit drawn to the area for hunting about 1000-2000 B.C.; then came the Vikings from Greenland, to trade, and finally europeans at 1616.

There are two inhabitated areas in the island: the arctic station Alert, for scientific and military purposes, and the inuit settlement of Grisefiord (Aujuittuq); I will soon publish a post on Grisefiord.

Qasigiannguit

Qasigiannguit (Christianshåb, pop. 1 300) is a small comunity located at the shores of Disko Bay, NW Greenland - the oldest danish colony there, founded in 1734.

It´s also home to Greenland's oldest wooden house (1734), the former house of Paul Egede, a danish missionary devoted to the inuit culture. In 1997, it opened as a museum.

During the Summer of 1999, an impressive discovery provided the museum with a collection of archaeological finds from different prehistoric arctic cultures.

15 000 !

I´ve just made it, 15 000 visits ! In less than a year, well, I´m happy ! Thank you visitors, keep coming !

Mario, Ultima Thule

The Viking Museum at Borg, Lofoten islands

The Viking territories

The Lofotr Borg Viking Museum is located 55 km from the town of Svolvaer, in the Lofoten Islands.

It was in 1982 that a farmer found some interesting "potsherds"; anthropologists and archeologists who excavated the land found evidences of the Viking era. The farmstead which was found after the excavation was discovered to be the property of one of the most important chieftains of the Viking region. The museum was constructed at this place.

In Northern Norway during the Iron-age, there were about 10-15 Chiefdoms, one of which was at Borg in Lofoten. Excavations shows that it was established around 500 AD.

Archaeological studies formed the basis when the house was reconstructed. The ground plan, the room partitions, the location of poles and fire places, the wooden walls and outer walls made of grass turf could all be reconstructed in accordance with the excavated structures.

Structures in the ground and the artefacts that have been found indicate that a chieftain lived here. The farm was evidently different from surrounding farms.

In the area there are also vestiges of boat houses for long-boats, circular tunnel systems, barrows, and vestiges of other long-houses. Added together, these remains indicate that there was a concentration of power in the area during the Iron age.

The Viking Museum displays:

- The 83 m long reconstructed long-house
- a reconstructed boathouse
- a forge
- several artifacts - and the Viking long ship "Lofotr"

http://www.lofotr.no/Engelsk/en_index.html