National Museum of Finland

The National Museum of Finland (Suomen kansallismuseo, Finlands Nationalmuseum) presents Finnish history from the Stone Age to the present day, through objects and cultural history. The Finnish National Romantic style building is located in central Helsinki and is a part of the Finnish Heritage Agency (until 2018 the National Board of Antiquities) (Museovirasto, Museiverket), under the Ministry of Culture and Education. The building of the National Museum was designed by the architect company Gesellius, Lindgren, Saarinen. The appearance of the building reflects Finland's medieval churches and castles. The architecture belongs to national romanticism and the interior mainly to art nouveau. The museum was built from 1905 to 1910 and opened to the public in 1916. The museum was named the Finnish National Museum after Finland's independence in 1917. After the last thorough renovation, the Museum was re-opened in July 2000. The museum's entrance hall ceiling has ceiling frescoes in the national epic Kalevala theme, painted by Akseli Gallén-Kallela, which can be seen without an entrance fee. The frescoes, painted in 1928, are based on the frescoes painted by Gallén-Kallela in the Finnish Pavilion of the Paris World Fair in 1900. The permanent exhibitions of the National Museum are divided into parts. There are collections of coins, medals, orders and decorations, silver, jewellery and weapons. There is prehistory of Finland, the development of Finnish society and culture from the Middle Ages 12th century to the early 20th century through the Swedish Kingdom Period to the Russian Empire Era, and Finnish folk culture in the 18th and 19th centuries with life in the countryside before the industrialisation among other exhibitions. The collections also included the Mesa Verde artifacts from the cliff dwellings of Colorado. These were donated to the museum by the Finland Swedish explorer Gustaf Nordenskiöld. They comprised the most-extensive collection of Mesa Verde items outside the United States and one of the largest collections of native Americana outside the American continents.