Skógar Museum in South Iceland is a cultural heritage collection of 15.000 regional folk tools and crafts. The museum consists of three exhibit buildings and six historical buildings.
The regional folk museum is famous throughout Iceland for being the best of its kind. This unique collection of mementos from South Iceland’s past sits in beautifully preserved, turf-roofed houses.
Local curator Þórður Tómasson started the original collection. However, in 1952 it became clear that the museum needed its own building. Three years later, the first museum structure was built. Additional historical buildings became a part of the museum, most recently a church and schoolhouse. As a matter of fact, these buildings came from various locations in South Iceland. Museum builders moved the historical structures to the museum and re-assembled them.
In 1990, the museum received a new extension. This extension enabled the museum to display the items in different sections separated by themes: Fisheries, Agriculture, Handcrafts, and more. Additionally, this building’s basement houses the county archives.
Twelve years later, a Transport Museum opened in a large building erected on the museum site. The museum focuses on transport and technology, as well as on the historical role horses and ferries played in overland transport in the days before roads and bridges.
Where to find Skógar Museum?
Skógar Museum is right next to Skógafoss Waterfall, just off the Ring Road. You’ll find Skógar 30 km west of Vik and 150 km east of Reykjavík.
