Museums of Norway
I have located two museums in Norway with an airship exhibit. If I encounter other museums in Norway which are verified to have an airship exhibit they will be included here.
Longyearbyen, Svalbard: North Pole Expedition Museum
The Spitsbergen Airship Museum opened in November 2008 in Longyearbyen, Svalbard. It recounts the heroic efforts made to reach the North Pole by aviation pioneers at the turn of the last century and includes the story of three airships, departing from Svalbard, and their flights toward the North Pole.
The airships are:
• Wellman with the AMERICA in 1906, 1907 & 1909
• The NORGE in 1926 (Man's first time reaching the North Pole)
• The ITALIA in 1928 and the following search and rescue expeditions
The nations that participated in these historical events include Norway, Russia, Italy, America, Sweden, Holland, France and Finland.
Controversy and a general lack of information has often surrounded these great expeditions. The Museum seeks to communicate, in a neutral manner and as correctly as possible, an understanding of the events that took place during and after these expeditions. As such, the Spitsbergen Airship Museum stands as one of Norway's only independent museums.
In July 2012 the Museum moved premises to a new custom built building in the centre of town. The musuem was then renamed as the "North Pole Expedition Museum".
Old films, photos, maps, newspapers, postcards, drawings, original artifacts, clothes and more. The Airship-shop sells old and new books & souvenirs.
Open seasonally (June to September) from 9 AM to 5 PM, every day.
Photography is apparently not permitted in this museum and I have not been able to determine what displays are present related to the Norge or Italia Airship expeditions, so I would invite anyone who has first-hand knowledge of the airship exhibits at this museum to contact me with a description. I will be happy to post here any short narratives of the value of this museum to airship enthusiasts.
Photo credit: Visit Svalbard
https://en.visitsvalbard.com/things-to-do/north-pole-expedition-museum-p3500533
Website: North Pole Expedition Museum
The museum is located at (Lat Lon) 78.223245 015.653493, in Longyearbyen, Svalbard.
The location of the location of the museum in Google Maps:
Luftskip og Båter (Airships and Boats) Museum, Vadsøya Island
The Airships and Boats museum is an annex of the Varanger Museums, part of the Vadsø Museum group. The Airships and Boats airship focus is on story of the voyages across the North Pole by the airship "Norge" in 1926 and "Italia" in 1928, and the layovers at Vadsø.
Photo credit: Google Earth
There is a sub-scale model of the Norge control car which visitors can enter and inspect and a paper model of the Norge hanging overhead.
Photo credit: Tor Kristoffersen
http://kulturarv.no/kulturminne/vadsoya-kulturpark
Photo credit: John Gagnier
http://www.gagnier.org/Norway.htm
Website: Varanger Museum
The museum is located at (Lat Lon) 70.070002 029.737136, on Vadsøya Island, Norway.
Nearby is the Vadsøya Mooring Mast Monument where the Norge and Italia once moored. That makes a trip to this museum a double "win".The museum is open some limited hours in the summer, 5 pm-7pm, and admission is free. One should check the schedule posted on the museum website or contact the site to arrange a visit.
The location of the location of the museum in Google Maps: