The Lower Level
The Permanent Exhibition - Viessom: A journey into the traditional life of the Coastal Sámi and how people have lived in harmony with nature for generations. The exhibition is divided into Maritime Culture (blue exibition) and The Farm (green exhibition).
Fragments of Lived Lives: A powerful and though- provoking exhibition about boarding scools, resistance work during The Second World War, and racial research. Here, you gain insight into stories that have left deep marks on the Lule Sámi community.
The Blue Hall: Currently closed as we prepare a new exhibition. Soon, you will be able to see artifacts from the Bååstede Project here.
Lower lever exhibitions
From Hunter to Farmer
04/04/2023The green zone highlights how the Sami adapted to inland environments over centuries.
The Fur Trade
04/04/2023Fur has long been among the most valued materials in European history. Alongside wool, it represented more than mere fabric — it served as a foundation for survival, trade, and social status.
Wild Ground and life on the Farm
04/04/2023Traditional Sami farm life was characterized by balance and the efficient use of all available natural resources. Nearly everything found in the surrounding environment had a practical function.
The Sami Summer Dairy and the Hunt
04/04/2023The fjord landscape, with its quiet waters and steep surrounding slopes, has long shaped patterns of Sami settlement and subsistence
The Year’s Cycle
04/04/2023The daily and seasonal rhythm of life on a Sami farm was shaped not only by weather and landscape, but also by the calendar of belief.
The Lofoten Fisheries, Sámis as boat builders and shipping of goods
28/06/2023For over a thousand years, the seasonal fisheries of Lufoahtta/Lofoten have shaped life along the coast of Northern Norway.
The Enigne and Hunting Large Sea Mammals
28/06/2023At the turn of the 20th century, maritime practices along the northern coast of Norway began to shift significantly. One of the most transformative changes was the introduction of engines in fishing vessels, gradually replacing traditional sails and oars with mechanical power.
Trading in Bergen & the Trumpet of Nordland
29/06/2023Centuries ago, the harbor in Biergun/Bergen would have been filled with the sounds and scents of maritime life — the creak of boats, the smell of dried fish and smoke, and voices speaking across languages and regions.
Sami Boatbuilding
29/06/2023Along the coast of Northern Norway, boats have always been essential to Sámi life. They served not only for travel and fishing, but as a means of trade, subsistence, and connection between communities.
Racial Research
08/08/2025This section of the exhibition addresses a painful and difficult period in Sámi history — one marked by exclusion, racial science, and quiet forms of resistance.
The Sámi Border Pilots
08/08/2025During the Second World War, the fjords and mountains of Divtasvuodna/Tysfjord became discreet but vital corridors of resistance.
The Residential Schools
08/08/2025The wall in the exhibition is filled with faces — some looking directly ahead, others turned away. Above them, the title reads: “We were meant to become good Norwegians.”