The General Art and Industrial Exposition of Stockholm of 1897 () also known as Stockholm Exhibition or Stockholm World's Fair (''Stockholmsutställningen'') was a

World's Fair A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition, is a large global exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specific site for a perio ...

staged in 1897 in

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

Background

On December 16, 1893, leading societies in Sweden approached the King with a petition expressing their wish to host an exposition. With royal approval, a commission was appointed and the Government gave formal approval for an exposition of art and industry to be held in 1897. This marked the 25th anniversary of King Oscar's reign. Construction began in 1895 and the Exposition was finally opened on May 15, 1897, by King Oscar II. The 3,722 exhibitors were limited to those from Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, and Russia; even though Canada and Germany tried several times to be allowed to participate. The exhibition site was located on the island of

Djurgården Djurgården ( or ) or, more officially, , is an island in central Stockholm, Sweden. Djurgården is home to historical buildings and monuments, museums, galleries, the amusement park Gröna Lund, the open-air museum Skansen, the small resident ...

, and many of the structures on the western part of the island originated as part of the exhibition. These include Djurgårdsbron, the main bridge to the island, the Skansens Bergbana, the

funicular railway A funicular ( ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to opposite ends ...

now in the

Skansen Skansen (; "the Sconce") is the oldest open-air museum and zoo in Sweden located on the island Djurgården in Stockholm, Sweden. It was opened on 11 October 1891 by Artur Hazelius (1833–1901) to show the way of life in the different parts ...

open-air museum An open-air museum is a museum that exhibits collections of buildings and artifacts outdoors. It is also frequently known as a museum of buildings or a folk museum. Definition Open air is "the unconfined atmosphere ... outside buildings" ...

and

zoo A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility where animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden'' refers to zoology, ...

, and the

Nordic Museum The Nordic Museum () is a museum located on Djurgården, an island in central Stockholm, Sweden, dedicated to the cultural history and ethnography of Sweden from the early modern period (in Swedish history, it is said to begin in 1520) to the ...

. One of the most prominent buildings of the exposition, a 16,820 m² exposition hall in wood, designed by the architect

Ferdinand Boberg Gustaf Ferdinand Boberg (11 April 1860 – 7 May 1946) was a Swedish architect. Biography Boberg was born in Falun. He became one of the most productive and prominent architects of Stockholm around the turn of the 20th century. Among his most ...

and featuring a 100 metres tall cupola and 4 minarets, was demolished after the exposition however, together with many other pavilions built in non-permanent materials. One theme of the exposition was the new media technologies of the day, including

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

and the

phonograph A phonograph, later called a gramophone, and since the 1940s a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogue reproduction of sound. The sound vibration Waveform, waveforms are recorded as correspond ...

. The opening ceremonies of the exposition were documented in early recordings, including the opening address by

King Oscar II Oscar II (Oscar Fredrik; 21 January 1829 – 8 December 1907) was King of Sweden from 1872 until his death in 1907 and King of Norway from 1872 to 1905. Oscar was the son of King Oscar I and Queen Josephine. He inherited the Swedish and Norweg ...

. These recordings have been preserved, and are now available on the internet.

Aftermath

After the exposition closed on October 3, 1897, the large industrial hall was torn down, but the

continued to be used and still remains in Stockholm. Remaining in their original places are the Reinhold Bakery, now a restaurant; the Royal Hunt Club Pavilion, now a private home; and the Diamond Rock Drill Co. Pavilion. Several pavilions were moved to Skansen including the Braghallen, the Fröstorp, and the Villa Lusthusporten.

References

External links

History of the event
{{Authority control World's fairs in Stockholm History of Stockholm Culture in Stockholm 1897 in Sweden Art Nouveau architecture in Stockholm Buildings and structures completed in 1897 Art Nouveau exhibitions 1890s in Stockholm 1897 festivals Festivals established in 1897