Lördag 3/21/14
We began our day at the Swedish History Museum. The exhibits revolved around Sweden's history and culture, past and present. I really enjoyed this museum. It differed in historical and museum theory from the Nordiska Museum. The Nordiska Museum falls into the traditional camp of historical theory which believes in the facts, that they are all true, and that they speak for themselves. In contrast, the Swedish History Museum falls into the second camp, which believes history is an attempt to recreate the past. History depends on the present and is always subjective. I believe strongly in this second camp, which is sometimes referred to as revisionist.
There was a Prehistory exhibit dealing with the Stone Age civilizations. I enjoyed that the exhibit designer made a point of saying that these were not technically Swedes since Sweden was far from existing at that time. Therefore it would be extremely anachronistic and nationalistic to call Stone Age people Swedes. There was also a hallway exhibit that asked museum goers to look critically at the nature of history. It was a nice introduction or summary of some historical theory. It addressed questions such as "What is the purpose of history?" "Who writes history" (because there is always an author that brings their own background to the interoperation) and "What does history do?"
I also really enjoyed the Viking exhibit. It contained a variety of artifacts including rune stones, skeletons, and numerous grave goods from swords to combs. Fun fact: almost all Vikings had hair combs, they loved to be groomed. Not the picture of burly and dirty pillagers we sometimes get. Part of the exhibit dealt with how Viking history and culture has been exploited over the last couple centuries. An example is that the Nazis during WWII made propaganda of a Viking warrior with a helmet displaying the swastika. The idea was that Norway should join Germany to regain power as a great warring empire, as the Vikings once were. The Vikings were so much more. Nazi propaganda intentionally left out the bits about how the Vikings were some of the founders of democracy. Norway ended up fighting bloody battles against Germany occupation and never gave in to their aggressors.
There were also exhibits on Medieval art, a timeline of Sweden's history and a gold room. The timeline continued to 2032 and asked questions about the future of Sweden. Right now there are many debates about immigration. This exhibit brought this up and made the museum goers look critically at how history is made. This museum does a great job of exposing visitors to real issues and does not merely display pretty objects for entertainment.
After lunch we went to a butterfly house. It was quite a trek out to it by public transportation. On the bus, we weren't sure which stop to get off at. We asked the bus driver and he said he'd let us know, it was about five stops. In five stops we looked around curiously but he said nothing. Then a lady asked if we were going to the butterfly house and we said yes. She said it was in two stops. Well, the bus didn't stop at the next stop so when it was our stop we didn't realize it. Thankfully four separate people on the bus told us it was our stop. It was pretty hilarious. The butterfly house was lovely and there was a large aquarium with sharks.
For dinner we ate burgers! It was so nice to get some American food.
We began our day at the Swedish History Museum. The exhibits revolved around Sweden's history and culture, past and present. I really enjoyed this museum. It differed in historical and museum theory from the Nordiska Museum. The Nordiska Museum falls into the traditional camp of historical theory which believes in the facts, that they are all true, and that they speak for themselves. In contrast, the Swedish History Museum falls into the second camp, which believes history is an attempt to recreate the past. History depends on the present and is always subjective. I believe strongly in this second camp, which is sometimes referred to as revisionist.
There was a Prehistory exhibit dealing with the Stone Age civilizations. I enjoyed that the exhibit designer made a point of saying that these were not technically Swedes since Sweden was far from existing at that time. Therefore it would be extremely anachronistic and nationalistic to call Stone Age people Swedes. There was also a hallway exhibit that asked museum goers to look critically at the nature of history. It was a nice introduction or summary of some historical theory. It addressed questions such as "What is the purpose of history?" "Who writes history" (because there is always an author that brings their own background to the interoperation) and "What does history do?"
I also really enjoyed the Viking exhibit. It contained a variety of artifacts including rune stones, skeletons, and numerous grave goods from swords to combs. Fun fact: almost all Vikings had hair combs, they loved to be groomed. Not the picture of burly and dirty pillagers we sometimes get. Part of the exhibit dealt with how Viking history and culture has been exploited over the last couple centuries. An example is that the Nazis during WWII made propaganda of a Viking warrior with a helmet displaying the swastika. The idea was that Norway should join Germany to regain power as a great warring empire, as the Vikings once were. The Vikings were so much more. Nazi propaganda intentionally left out the bits about how the Vikings were some of the founders of democracy. Norway ended up fighting bloody battles against Germany occupation and never gave in to their aggressors.
There were also exhibits on Medieval art, a timeline of Sweden's history and a gold room. The timeline continued to 2032 and asked questions about the future of Sweden. Right now there are many debates about immigration. This exhibit brought this up and made the museum goers look critically at how history is made. This museum does a great job of exposing visitors to real issues and does not merely display pretty objects for entertainment.
After lunch we went to a butterfly house. It was quite a trek out to it by public transportation. On the bus, we weren't sure which stop to get off at. We asked the bus driver and he said he'd let us know, it was about five stops. In five stops we looked around curiously but he said nothing. Then a lady asked if we were going to the butterfly house and we said yes. She said it was in two stops. Well, the bus didn't stop at the next stop so when it was our stop we didn't realize it. Thankfully four separate people on the bus told us it was our stop. It was pretty hilarious. The butterfly house was lovely and there was a large aquarium with sharks.
For dinner we ate burgers! It was so nice to get some American food.
Zach trying on a Medieval helmet
Zach and Pat preparing to duel
A golden crown in the golden room
Me, Hannah and Paget being tourists at central station!
Beautiful butterfly
Zach and Kenzie at The Burger Bar.
That museum was sure right up your alley. Thank you for at least one picture of an object in the gold room. Very interesting about the Nazi's attempt to appeal to the Norwegians. Beau-ti-ful but-ter-fly (Ste-pha-nie)!
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