Talen er publisert med forbehold om endringer under fremførelsen.

Dear friends, dear guardians of our common history,

Each and every one of us constitutes the extension of a myriad of histories and events that have taken place over preceding generations. Lives shaped under vastly different circumstances. Existence influenced by choices and coincidences.

We all derive huge benefit from knowing about where we come from, and what it is that has shaped our parents, grandparents and ancestors. Knowing yourself and the history you form an integral part of – both in the past and the present – is fundamental. A legacy we must do our utmost to pass on to our children.

Few of us descend directly from kings and generals. As a rule, what we read in our history books is the history of the literate minority; not least the select few who were blessed with power.

It is at such open air museums as here at Maihaugen that we meet the other stories as well. Those of farmers and crofters, sheriffs and clergymen. Those of artisans and merchants, women and men from town and country.

I have chosen the word “meet” deliberately, because this is what we really do. We step into rooms that are steeped in history. We find ourselves in places that lead us into direct and physical contact with the past. We can feel and sense our ancestors’ day-to-day lives: emanating from the walls and the furniture; thick in the mustiness of the air.

And this takes us to the very heart of what I believe is unique about open air museums. Basing a museum on a selection of buildings, and the farmyards, courtyards and landscapes in which they were located, has proved to be a supreme method of communication. Visitors wander around, look and learn, and experience a rich variety of cultural environments. At its best, even the layout of the museum, the spaces between the buildings, can serve to inspire reflection on the past and the present.

It strikes me that visitors to open air museums always have been – and still are – unusually active museum guests. Way before such notions as interactivity, physical interaction and experience design became common parlance in the world of museums, open air museums engaged and fascinated visitors in a dynamic and – in our eyes – modern way.

Many of Europe’s open air museums take care of buildings and objects that are several centuries old. This means that the collective knowledge and expertise at these museums is in the process of disappearing from society at large.

An important example of this is the traditional crafts. In Norway, like many other places in the world, a number of the old crafts are in danger of disappearing. In the long run this will mean that not only will a vital part of our cultural heritage be lost, but also that the skills associated with them will disappear. One of the most essential jobs of the open air museums is to make sure that this doesn’t happen.

Across the world open air museums have played an vital role in nation building. They came into being as part of the 19th and 20th centuries’ need to get to know ourselves and our heritage. For many years the majority of open air museums went in search of the special, the peculiar, the unique. Take Maihaugen, our host here today, for instance. It tells the story of the Gudbrandsdalen valley and its inhabitants from all strands of society.

Today I believe that this role has changed, or at least evolved and expanded. We must view ourselves as pieces of a larger jigsaw puzzle; one that concerns our common heritage.

It’s many years since folklorists first revealed to us that many of our traditional fairytales are the same across much of Europe. I’m convinced that Europe’s open air museums, with their manifold tales from all social strata and walks of life, have the potential to play the same role. Perhaps their most important task in the years ahead is to help the public to open their eyes to what it is that unites us as much as what it is that divides us.

You are all stewards of precious pieces of the complex and compelling mosaic that makes up our common heritage; what it is that makes us who we are.

All that leaves for me to do – as a neighbour and as a true friend of open air museums – is to warmly welcome you to Maihaugen, and to wish you the very best for continuing inspiration and rewarding days at this conference.

Thank you.