Norwegian Ambassador visits Museum to launch “The Vikings” exhibition.

Andrew Ward Inishowen Development Partnership, Seamus Carey Museum committee member, Norwegian Ambassador to Ireland Mari Skåre, Seamus Bovaird Museum committee member, Ken Doherty Museum committee member, Karl Vekins Museum committee member

The Norwegian Ambassador to Ireland, Mari Skåre, visited the museum on 26 July 2021 to renew the connections made

by her predecessor, Else Berit Eikeland, with cultural interests in Inishowen and to formally launch a new Norwegian exhibition, “The Vikings  “,

The previous ambassador had arranged the loan, from the Fram Museum, Oslo, of the exhibition, “Cold Recall – Roald Amundsen’s expedition to the South Pole”.

This had been replaced by the new exhibition, but Covid precautions had prevented an official launch, earlier, so Ambassador Skåre did the honours on this visit.

The exhibition will be on display until Spring 2022, when it is hoped to replace it by an exhibition on the Spanish Armada.

This year is the 50th anniversary of the discovery of “La Trinidade Valencera” by Derry sub-Aqua Club, in Kinnago Bay but Covid has delayed this commemoration too.

Ambassador Skåre met with representatives of Inishowen’s four secondary schools, the Inishowen Traditional Music Project and with some traditional boatbuilders and sailors to re-start some of the Embassy projects.

She will be returning in the Autumn to progress the projects.

Norwegian visits to Inishowen.

Kjell Magnus Økland will be organising visits by Norwegian traditional boat builders and maritime heritage enthusiasts to Ireland over the coming season.
Kjell is a journalist, photographer, film maker & webmaster and has been an organizer and promoter of cultural and maritime events for more than 25 years. He sails both traditional and modern boats.
Kjell, and his family, will be visiting Inishowen on 25, 26 & 27th February for a preliminary tour of maritime culture and heritage promoters in Donegal and will be based at the Inishowen Maritime Museum, Greencastle.
Kjell is the managing director of the Coastal Heritage Weeks Foundation.

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“Cold Recall” – Roald Amundsen’s expedition to the South Pole.

In November 1912, Roald Amundsen, the Norwegian polar explorer, delivered a lecture to the Royal Geographic Society, London, describing his expedition to the South Pole.
The lecture was accompanied by slide photographs taken on the expedition. The quality and clarity of the photography is amazing.
The Fram Museum, Bygdøy, Oslo, is dedicated to telling the story of Norwegian polar exploration.
In 2006, the negatives of Amundsen’s polar collections were donated to a public / private partnership in Norway and are archived in the Norwegian National Library.
The Fram Museum used this access to create exhibitions, and accompanying book, about Amundsen’s polar expeditions. Using the original photographs and notes and reports of the expeditions, the museum has created an entertaining and informative display.

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New book published by Inishowen Maritime

The book by Guy Warner covers WW1 naval aviation in Inishowen. Its main emphasis is on the United States Naval Air Station “Lough Foyle” at Ture, with pictures and stories of seaplanes, base and personnel and descriptions of the interaction between base personnel and the local community.
It also covers the Royal Navy kite balloon service in Lough Swilly, the USNAS meteorological station at Malin Head and the testing out of Ballylifen as a mooring out station for Royal Naval Air Service dirigible balloons.

Cost- €12.00

P&P – Ireland €2.50 Europe- €3.70 Other- €4.80