Hordamuseum

Close to and in balance with nature. The story told goes almost 2000 years back in time. Exhibitions and open-air museum. Great outdoor area with a beach.

Farming and fishing was not only an occupation, but a way of living

Farming and fishing was not only an occupation, but a way of living. Throughout the ages, most people have lived in the countryside, close to and in balance with nature. Farming and fishing, often with craftwork as a supplementary activity, enabled people in this area to survive. The landscape was well cared for. Livestock grazed outside the settlements and kept the vegetation down. Dirt walls and stone farm buildings were built and maintained. In summer, the cultivated land was covered with row after row of racks filled with drying hay and fields planted with potato and grain. On the landings in front of the boathouses lay small row boats drying in the sun. Life was governed by the seasons and not by the clock

Hordamuseet is located at Stend, with the Fana fjord as its closest neighbor. The area show traces of people who lived here in the past. Burial mounds, a large stone circle and traces from a 34 meters long boat house from Roman times demonstrate that power and religious activity was concentrated here nearly 2000 years ago.

In Stend and Fanafjellet the museum has a collection of old houses, brought here from Mid and North Hordaland. The houses show how life was lived in earlier times, and how building styles, handicrafts and knowledge were developed over hundreds of years.

Entering the main building of the museum, one can see both permanent and temporary Exhibitions. The boat hall, which was opened in 2013 is the latest addition to the museum and shows the key importance boats had for the people living along the coast.