EXHIBITIONS

It was built on the present site in 1670 in the Carolingian style with gabled roofs and gables in which the mine bell once sat. Over the years, the house has undergone a couple of major renovations, for example in 1753. The building contains the Court Hall and/or Church Hall. The mine’s management was housed there, with the chief mining inspector, the top manager and the Crown’s man on site. The morning prayer was held here before each day and justice was served here. The mine had its own jurisdiction and the Mining Court, both managed the work and ruled in legal cases involving officials and workers. The Geschworner (roughly the chief engineer) lived in the house periodically.

In the beautiful Court Hall, there are some magnificent objects from the mine’s history on display. The strangest piece is the blue-painted ore barrel with a bench that Carl XI travelled in when he visited the mine in August 1687. The king was hoisted down Queen Christina’s shaft, all the way to the bottom at a depth of 190 meters and stayed underground for a whole day. Next to the barrel is a portrait of Carl XI by the master and court painter David Klöcker Ehrenstrahl. In a stand below the portrait, there are some exciting objects. Including Crown Princess Lovisa Ulrica’s white gloves which she is said to have thrown down the Queens’ shaft in 1750, commemorative medals from royal visits and a small silhouette portrait of Afock, the first Chinese person to visit Sweden.