Trondheim

Friday 1^st June

We are rapidly approaching the end of our trip, seven days till we leave.  We set out today to view a sculpture Salamander Night which according to the guide book was in the Sparebank in Sondre Gate; little did we know that every bank is Sparebank, with the company name in front.  After wandering up and down the street we eventually found the correct bank and went into view the exhibit, it was in a dark room with heavy blackout curtains over the entrance, the lighting was almost non-existent and the only way we could view the work was to use a flash.  Also in the same area were the excavations of an old church complete with a wooden coffin and body.

From the bank we walked to the library where there are more church excavations this time with a grave with what appeared to be a family but they hadn’t been buried in a coffin.  Walking on to the Nidelven River we visited the oldest bridge in Trondheim and viewed the houses lining both sides of the river at Bakklander, these were originally worker’s homes and are built on piles.  

 From the river we walked to The Church of Our Lady, the oldest part of this distinctive church was erected in the 12th century and over the years it has been the victim of many fires and was last restored in 1739, but parts of the thick, solid walls of the Church are obviously much older.  The first tower of the church was built around 1640, but the current tower was built in 1742 and the spire was erected in 1779.

Our next stop was at Stiftsgarden, The Royal Residence in Trondheim and the largest wooden palace in Northern Europe, it is built mainly in the Baroque classic style.  The house was originally built as a private residence during 1774 – 1778 and in 1800 it was sold to the state and used by the Governor of the region and a Royal residence when the Royal family visited; from 1906 it became exclusively the Royal Residence.  The palace has been used since 1818 by many Kings before their coronation in Nidaros Cathedral.

During the war the Germans used the palace as their northern headquarters and the commander’s desk is still in the building, it only survived because it was made by a local craftsman, all the other German contents were destroyed by the residents when they left.

After lunch we went in search of the Middle Ages Exhibition, the building wasn’t where it was shown on the map but we eventually found it.  The display covers from the 900s until the 1700s and includes the replica of the front half of a Viking ship built by local ship builders.  A lot of the display is about the early Viking rulers and the conversion to Christianity in the region with many articles excavated throughout Trondheim.  One area had a replica of a village in the 12^th century with log cottages and people going about their daily tasks and the display continues through to the 1700s and the best part, admission was free, very unusual in Norway.

 

Before returning to our hotel we walked past Nidaros Cathedral the object for our visit tomorrow and also the Town Hall built in 1951 which has a two dimensional mosaic in the entrance porch depicting residents through the ages.