Southern Norway - Norway - page 201

presentedexhibitionofthismostcontroversialofNorwegianactivities.Themuseumcharts
the history of Norwegian whaling, with photos and equipment.
In addition to whaling-related exhibits the museum contains information and displays
on general Arctic and marine wildlife. The museum offers a balanced report on both sides
of the whaling debate. Exhibits here are complemented by the 1950s whaleboat South-
ern Actor (adult/child Nkr50/25; 9.30am-5pm late Jun-Aug) , which is moored at
the harbour; entry is by the same ticket. There's also the striking sculpture monument to
whalers by the water.
There are a number of business-standard chain hotels in and around the town.
Most buses running between Oslo and Kristiansand stop in Sandefjord.
Larvik
POP 41,400
Larvik is one of the largest towns along Norway's south coast. Although it has some good
museums, its main attractions are Norway's most accessible excavations from the Viking
era. The town's main historical claim to fame is as the home town of Thor Heyerdahl, one
of Norway's premier explorers.
Sights & Activities
Larvik Museum MUSEUM
(adult/child combined ticket Nkr50/10; noon-4pm Tue-Sun late Jun-mid-Aug,
shorter hr rest of yr) This four-part museum is spread across the town:
The classic baroque timber Herregården manor house (Herregårdsletta 6; guided
tours every hr) was constructed in 1677 as the home of the Norwegian Governor General,
Ulrik Frederik Gyldenløve, the Duke of Larvik; as the illegitimate son of King Fredrik IV
ofDenmark,GyldenløvewasgivenadukedomandpackedofftoNorwegianobscurity.It's
furnished in 17th- and 18th-century style.
Larvik Maritime Museum (Kirkestredet 5) , a 1730 brick structure immediately east
of the harbour, is home to maritime art and a number of impressive model ships. There's
also a small exhibition on the nearby Viking town of Kaupang.
Verkensgarorden (Nedre Fritzøegate 2) has tools and implements from a local 17th-
century sawmill and ironworks. There's also a permanent geological exhibition document-
ing the evolution of blue larvikite, a beautiful, locally quarried 500-million-year-old type
of granite.