Norwegian Museum of Cultural History

Visiting the open air museum of cultural history in Norway was a very fulfilling experience. On the guided tour, we were shown several farmhouses as well as a stave church. It was satisfying to see this, as the architectural styles matched the common American media’s representation of what houses look like in northern Europe.

We learned that storage areas for food and clothes were lofted. This was for two reasons. First, to protect the goods from being stolen. Second, to put the large storage units on display to illustrate wealth and prosperity. This would invite more promising marital agreements between young farmers, as anybody that could see this display of wealth would be more likely to approach the possibility of marriage.

The farmhouses were uphill from the animal barns, and the animal barns were uphill from the field. The Norwegians did this so that water would reach humans first, then animals, then crops. Also, animal waste would neither flow toward the human living quarters nor would it have to be carried uphill to fertilize the crops.