Skansen Museum

Skansen Museum

Skansen Museum (Skansen) is an open-air folk museum situated on Djurgården Island in Stockholm, Sweden. Founded in 1891 by Artur Hazelius, it was designed to present pre-industrial life from different parts of Sweden. The museum site includes around 160 buildings and farmsteads from across Sweden, as well as species of animals native to Scandinavia. The name “Skansen” originates from a fortress (Skans) built by King Charles XIV John for his son, Oscar I, as a play area.

Originally part of the Nordic Museum, Skansen became independently managed in 1963, although the objects inside its buildings still belong to the Nordic Museum. Covering approximately 300,000 square meters, the museum recreates a complete picture of a 19th-century town, where shoemakers, silversmiths, bakers, and glassblowers in traditional costumes demonstrate historic crafts. Visitors can enter all the houses and farmyards to experience traditional Swedish life. The on-site zoo is home to various Scandinavian animals, including wolves, lynxes, wolverines, brown bears, moose, Eurasian nightjars, eagles, European bison, red foxes, wild swans, Arctic cats, otters, and sea lions, among others. Since 1903, a Christmas market has been held every December in the central square of the museum. In the summer, folk dancing and concerts take place.

Skansen

Reason to visit: The oldest open-air museum in the Scandinavian region

Continent where the attraction is located: Europe【Europe】

Country/Region where the attraction is located: Sweden[Sweden]

Province/State where the attraction is located: Stockholm County [Stockholm County]