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Description

Kjerringøy
Through both films and books Kjerringøy has become the archetype of a Northern Norwegian trading settlement. This site is idyllically situated on Kjerringøy, roughly 40 kilometres north of Bodø. Located between the settlement and another small island is a narrow sound which provides a safe harbour. The buildings lie in a U-shaped cluster near the edge of the sea, with the main building situated parallel to the shoreline. In 1942 the complex was declared listed. The complex is comprised of fifteen buildings, which were constructed beginning early in the 19th century until roughly 1880.

Kjerringøy has been a trading settlement since the beginning of the 17th century. Many of the buildings that are currently located on Kjerringøy were built by Christian Sverdrup, such as the two-storied main building designed in the Empire style. Another central figure associated with this site was Erasmus Zahl, who took over the operations in 1858, when he married the widow Anna Elisabeth. Since the 1820s this site experienced stable growth, reaching its peak under the ownership of Zahl. What is referred to as "Storsildtida" (the Large Herring period) occurred during the period 1864-1974. This was a pinnacle time for both Kjerringøy and a number of other trading settlements in Nordland.

The warehouse Heimbrygga is situated out at sea, to the left in the photo. It was constructed in approximately 1820, and is one of the oldest structures at the trading settlement. This warehouse was erected with post and beam construction and has vertical panelling on the exterior and a saddle roof. To the right of the white painted main building lies the small boathouse Litjnaust, which was erected around 1850, along with the ochre-yellow coloured pigsty Grishuset,which was built in 1882.

“The New Barn” was built in 1992-96 on the same location as the previous barn. The old barn was demolished in 1892. “The New Barn” includes an information hub, a café and a workshop amongst other things. The architect of “The New Barn” was Gisle Jakhelln on behalf of BOARCH architects AS.

Year of construction

19th century

Client

Christian Lorentzen Sverdrup
Erasmus Benedikt Kjerschow Zahl

Building Type

Trading settlement
farm site
fishery
museum

Construction System / Materials

Post and beam construction
cogging joint method
timber
woodwork

Keywords

trading settlement
farm
museum
fishery
post and beam construction
log construction
timber
woodwork
empire style

Literature

Brekke, Nils Georg, Per Jonas Nordhagen and Siri Skjold Lexau: Norsk arkitekturhistorie, Oslo 2003 pp. 183-185.

Svendsen, Ola Ø.: Fredede hus og anlegg 1, Oslo 1981, pp. 52-55.

Valebrokk, Eva and Geir Thomas Risåsen: Norske slott, Herregårder og gods, Oslo 1997 pp. 400-411.

Map

Kjerringøy handelssted
Kjerringøy handelssted
Kjerringøy handelssted
Kjerringøy handelssted
Kjerringøy handelssted
Kjerringøy handelssted