The awarding of the Preservation Prize 2025 to the Museum of the Viking Age is of significant importance for the safety of the 5,236 artifacts that will be exhibited when the museum opens in 2027. The financial contribution will be used to develop the areas for artifact management. These functions are crucial for ensuring the safety of the artifacts when they are preserved in the new museum.
"We are humble and grateful to receive the Preservation Prize 2025. This means a great deal for the safety of the artifacts and the operation of the museum. Being recognized for our work by the UNI Foundation is significant and serves as motivation for our continued efforts," says museum director Aud V. Tønnessen.
Critical for Safety
When the government ordered the Museum of the Viking Age to reduce costs, essential functions in the museum were removed from the construction project. Critical to the safety of the artifacts was the removal of areas designated for artifact management. These facilities include conservation, storage, laboratory work, and digital documentation, as well as workshops, workspaces, and areas that will ensure safe treatment of artifacts in connection with exhibitions, research, and conservation.
"Without these areas, all conservation and assembly tasks related to the exhibitions would have to be done in the storage building at Økern, and transportation between the museum and the storage would pose a significant risk to the museum's artifacts," says museum director Aud V. Tønnessen.
If these functions had not been reinstated, the opening of the new Museum of the Viking Age would also have been delayed. With the donation from the UNI Foundation, these vital spaces can now be included back into the construction project.
Charitable Purpose
The UNI Foundation is a public utility foundation that supports initiatives aimed at protecting people and cultural heritage. It is a foundation with the goal of promoting public benefit activities within safety and environmental protection, thereby contributing to a safe development in Norwegian society.