SECRETS 10 about Bergen
Get to know some of the many secrets hiding in the historic centre of Bergen.
THE LION
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Photo: Martine Haugen
A girl named Dyveke lived in Hollendergaten 10, and was the mistress of the danish Christian II, who at the time was king of both Danmark, Sweden and Norway. She remained his mistress until she died in 1517. Hollendergaten 10 has been associated with her and the king because of the plinth next to the entrance. The plinth is decorated with a lion in relieff, and the gold lion is also the coat of arms in Norway. In the 19th century the Lion was the city’s point zero, and all distances in the city where measured from this point. Source: Bergen municipality
A FAKE WINDOW
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The old town hall in Bergen is hiding a secret on the second floor. At first glance it looks like there are three windows on the short side, but that's not true. There are only two windows, as the window in the center is painted on. This is because the town hall was made in a time when glass was expensive. Source: Bergen city archives
Photo: Martine Haugen
The whole wall on one side of Hotel Park Pension is painted on. The whole fasade on that side is false, but the windows and the detailing are identical to the other side of the building that's facing the street.
Photo by Martine Haugen
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Photo by Martine Haugen
MORE FALSE WINDOWS
SWASTIKAS
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The pattern on this balcony look suspiciously like swastikas, the symbol associated with the German occupation of Norway between 1940 and 1945. The yellow building in Christian Michelsens street also lies straight across from what used to be Gestapo's main quarter in Bergen. However, this building has nothing to do with this as it was drawn by architect Torgeir Alvsaker, and built in 1927. The pattern is also facing the other way, and the ends are bent to the left. Source: Bergen municipality.
GESTAPO’S HOUSE
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Photo: Martine Haugen
This building lies in the middle of Bergen, in the street Veiten 3. Before the building was finished, it was taken over by the Nazis in 1940. German security police (SIPO) and GESTAPO (Geheime Staatspolizei) used the fourth and fifth floor. Fearing an allied invasion in the West of Norway, many people in the region were brought in for questioning and tortured, in an attempt to get information. Between 800 and 900 Norwegians were taken in for violent questioning during the war. The building was named Gestapohuset (Gestapo’s house) by the locals. Many prisoners died as a result of the torture, and many took their own lives. Others were marked for life. The prison cells on the fourth floor has hardly changed since the war, and you can still see names on the walls that the prisoners had carved in. Source: Riksantikvaren
22 | byLIV
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