All You Need to Know When Visiting the Schøtstuene Museum Bergen

What is a Schøtstuene?

It’s probably best to start by explaining this long, strange word. Schøtstuene is a Norwegian word that refers to an old assembly hall and common room. It was also the cookhouse, so the merchants would eat, socialise and drink in these buildings. But they would also use them for meetings, councils, legal courts, and schools for the younger apprentice. So, these rooms were pretty much used for everything.

Definition

Schøt Stu = room // ene = plural “the common rooms”. If it said “Schøtstue” it would be a single room

The word comes from the Old Norse skytningsstova, which referred to a tavern.

The layout of a Schøtstue

The buildings were typically two-storeys, with a kitchen on the lower floor and the assembly hall on the upper floor. Originally, each trading house on Bryggen would have a schøtstue, but after the great fire of 1702, the law stated that each trading house in a particular row or alley must share a schøtstue at the back. This reduced the risk of fire.

In the main hall, you’d find benches that are divided in a way that different groups sharing a schøtstue had their fixed share of bench space. They also had a table and food cupboard. They’d often have a chandelier, a great long table, washbasins, jugs, and roller-towels. In most buildings, there would be a separate room where the beer was stored – very important stuff!

In the cookhouse, the tiled roofs were laid directly onto the rafters, so smoke could escape between the tiles. There are also large vents in the walls. Along the long wall hung all the kitchen utensils and it’s again divided up between each group. Each group also had their own serving bench.

Inside the Museum

Today, the museum consists of four assembly rooms and two cookhouses. Some of the buildings are reconstructions and some of them have been moved from their original location.

The Hall

When you step into the museum, the first thing you’ll see is the entrance hall. It is not authentic; the Hanseatics never had an entrance hall like this. Rather, when the museum was built in the 1930s, this hall was added to welcome you to the museum. The paintings on the wall are called ‘ranke’ paintings, and while new, they are inspired by paintings found on the 18th-century buildings.

Stairs will lead you up to the first Schøtstue.

The Jakobsfjorden & Bellgården Schøtstue

While this schøstue was constructed in 1938, it reflects what a schøstue might have looked like before the fire of 1702, which destroyed over 90% of Bergen. This one has been inspired by an assembly room in Lubeck in the ‘Seafarers Guild Hall’ – after all, the Hanseatic Merchants did come from Lubeck.

The fireplace at the back has a beautiful stone ‘logo’ on it, with the Hanseatic symbol of Bergen. Around it is the word ‘Brandtwein’, which means brandy or liquor. It’s believed that this came from the old wine cellar, which was destroyed first in 1702 and again at the start of the 20th century when they replaced it with the modern brick buildings (roughly where the shop ‘Røst’ is). On it seems to be the date ‘1542’.

Here you can see the dividers for each group that shared this hall. Written on them are the job titles of who’d sit there – on the side of the benches, you can see logos of various Hanseatic cities. In the middle on the largest dividers is another Bergen Hanseatic logo.

These washbasins date back from around 1554 and come from the old Hanseatic Museum.

Back then (and even today!) it was considered rude to point, so the Hanseatics had this stick with a finger on the end. If they wanted to accuse someone of something, rather than rudely point with their own finger, they’d get this stick and point it at the accused.

The Svensgården Schøtstue

The real Svensgården Schøtstue still stands on its original location at the back of Bryggen, and today it’s the restaurant ‘Bryggen Tracteursted’. The schøtstue was in such a poor condition that it was unable to be moved. If you don’t get a chance to visit the restaurant (which you really should), you can see a replica of the schøtstue here at the museum. The replica is an exact copy in its form, construction, and furnishings. The tiles on the ground are from Bremen in Germany – a major Hanseatic city.

When I visited, the Svensgården schøtstue was being used to display what the Hanseatics ate, with cabbage seemingly the main source of nutrition. Behind the schøtstuene would be vegetable gardens. Fake cabbage plants can be found around this room.

When this building was constructed in the 1930s, they used both old and new logs. What’s nice about this room is that you can see the older logs in contrast to the newer logs.

See that sliding panel there? The museum isn’t so sure what it’s about – they believe it used to open up into the cookhouse so the apprentice chefs could be checked upon.

If you look closely at the logs, you can see they are numbered. This is how people in Bergen used to buy homes – they’d buy a second-hand home, number the planks of wood, disassemble and then reassemble their home in their desired spot. These numbers on the planks are currently being studied – but it’s so cool seeing them up close like this!

More cabbage and carvings – can you see the wooden carvings on the planks?

Bredsgården Schøtstue

This schøtstue is one of the originals, having been constructed in 1709. It has two floors – the lower floor has storerooms and a cookhouse. The room was rebuilt in 1761 – the room for storing beer was not reconstructed, but most of the old materials were used. It’s believed that by then the Hanseatics had become Norwegian citizens and were no longer living here, meaning that eating areas were not exactly needed – they could eat at home! This building was used up until the 1840s.

Washbasins in the room date back to 1614. Does it look like a dog on the end?

Otherwise, in this room, you can see an original schøtstue. It never used to be brown – the brown walls were painted. Look closer on the walls…

These symbols were discovered in April 2019, and the museum doesn’t quite understand why they are here… They are currently being studied, as is the age of the benches.

Bredsgården Cookhouse

This cookhouse is a reconstruction, but the materials used are old. Since the Hanseatics moved into their homes throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, these cookhouses became obsolete and were eventually torn down. All that was remaining of this one was the bottom wall and remains of the walls and flagstones.

These shoes were worn by apprentices and could only be worn in the cookhouse – the goal was to prevent the burning coal spreading into the other rooms. This would, of course, cause fires.

The large white stove is original. These stoves were added to the buildings after the 1702 fire and heated the entire schøtstue.

To cook, the pots were placed above the stone area in the middle of the room, where there was a fire. When the fire got too hot, they raised the pot. When the food was ready, the burning coals were raked together and put beneath a copper lid.

Much like the main assembly rooms, the cookhouse was divided up amongst each group that shared it.

Dramshusen Schøtstue

The Dramshusen Schøtstue and the cookhouse (in the next room) is one of the oldest timber buildings preserved on Bryggen. Built in 1703, the building was torn down in 1900 to make way for those new brick buildings on Bryggen. However, it was reconstructed more or less as the same in 1936.

The red colour was recreated in 2012 and comes from some ranke paintings that were found in the room. This type of painting isn’t unique to Bergen, but rather comes from different places in Europe and takes its inspiration from Baroque and Renaissance styles.

The colourful doors date back to the 18th century. The benches are likely new, but the jambs between them are possibly original.

Dramshusen Cookhouse

The Dramshusen Cookhouse was built in 1703 and is the most authentic building in the museum. It shows well how the cookhouse was linked to the main sitting room. They are currently using the cookhouse to showcase another important part of the museum, the medieval ruins underneath.

When the museum was being built in the 1930s, they uncovered the remains of a possible house that dates back to 1280. While little of the house is known, this room has a small exhibition on how they collect samples from the ground to date the ruins.

Outside the Museum

When you step outside the museum, before going to the exit take a look at this beautiful logo. On it, you can see another Hanseatic logo for Bergen, but also the name ‘St. Catherine’s. This is an old hospital. It’s believed the hospital was established around the 13th century, and it was originally intended as a hospital for leprosy. From 1500 onwards, it was run by the Hanseatic League and was referred to as a poorhouse.

The hospital burnt down in 1702 but was rebuilt. In 1779, it closed down. It was excavated in 1986, and now you can see the ruins across the street from St. Mary’s Church. It’s named after Catherina of Alexandria, who is a saint and a patron for girls, virgins and wives, educated professions like scientists and teachers, and service workers like hairdressers and seamstresses.

Facilities

Shop

There is no shop inside the Schøtstuene museum itself; there is a museum shop located on Bryggen (about a 5 minute walk away) that has excellent books in English, Norwegian and German as well as Bergen & seafaring-themed souvenirs.

Cafe

There is no cafe inside the museum, but you are minutes away from Bryggen and the various restaurants and cafes there.

Restrooms

Located in the main entrance hall

Language

Signs are in English and Norwegian

Guided Tours

When you pay the admission fee, you’ll have the opportunity to take an included guided tour. The tours last 15 minutes and cover the museum and history of the Hanseatic League in Bergen. Check with the reception desk about tours in different languages other than English.

Longer tours with the Schøtstuene and Bryggen are offered daily at 3pm and last 40 minutes. They start at Schøtstuene and end at the souvenir shop.

Visit the website for more information: https://hanseatiskemuseum.museumvest.no/english/our-exhibitions/daily-guided-tours-at-schoetstuene-and-bryggen/

Practical Information

Opening Hours

• January – April: 11am – 3pm
• May: 9am – 5pm
• June – August: 9am – 6pm
• September: 9am – 5pm
• October – December: 11am – 3pm

Admission Fee

• Adult: 120 NOK
• Child: Free
• Student: 100 NOK
• Not included with the Bergen Card

Getting There

The Schøtstuene Museum is located next to St. Mary’s Church, just behind Bryggen and the Radisson Blu Hotel.

Accessibility

• The museum has narrow stairs to get to to the upper floors

Plan your visit

• Allow around 45 minutes to visit the museum
• Luggage lockers are not available

Useful Information

• Be sure to visit the exhibition about the house discovered under the museum; it’s one of my favourite parts of the museum!

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