Architectural gems from an industrial past
Once the hub of Sweden’s 19th and early 20th century textile industry, Norrköping’s industrial heritage is visible in its unusually well-preserved industrial landscape. One of the city’s most iconic industrial buildings is the ‘Strykjärnet’ (flatiron) building, a former weaving mill and Sweden’s most famous historical factory. Situated on the tiny island of Laxholmen in the Motala river, the 7-storey building seems to rise directly from the water and is in the form of an irregular heptagon, hence its resemblance to an iron shape. Today, Strykjärnet houses Arbetets museum (The Museum of Work) and, as the name suggests, The Museum of Work is dedicated to the history and future of working life and society.
Another historical building that’s gained new life is ‘Yllefabriken’ (The Wool Factory). This grand industrial building now houses Ståhl Collection, a private initiative by art collector Mikeal Ståhl. Some 500 works, mainly paintings and sculptures from the 1950s to today, are on show.
In the city’s Old Town (Gamla stan), you can stroll around the Knäppingsborg area, which gets its name from the Viking fort that once lay here, and browse the area’s many artisan boutiques. The area as we know it today flourished in the 18th century, when its factories milled flour and produced ‘snus’, the Swedish smokeless tobacco made from ground or pulverised tobacco leaves.