Norway The Saga Pillar
At Elveseter Hotell you will find the Saga Pillar, which with its 34 meters is one of the tallest pillars in the world. Søyla depicts key moments in Norway's history. At the top sits Harald Hårfagre, the symbol of the transition from a divided kingdom to a united nation.
Søyla has a long and special history. It was originally intended to be Norway's national monument, and was to be placed outside the Storting.
The sculptor Wilhelm Rasmussen won the commission announced by the Norwegian government in 1926, in competition with, among others, Gustav Vigeland.
Completion was shelved
When the Second World War ended in 1945, the pillar was still not finished. The completion of the artwork was then shelved, because the artist had expressed sympathy with the German occupation forces.
It eventually became impossible to erect a national monument made by a man who had served a sentence for treason.
Found the pillar in a shed
In the 1980s, the previous generation's owner of Elveseter Hotell, Åmund Elveseter, came across the elements that were stored in a shed on Skøyen in Oslo. The art collector Elveseter, who during the war was also a member of the Norwegian resistance movement, believed that Norway's national monument deserved a better fate.
He took matters into his own hands, ensured that the pillar was restored and completed, and had it erected at Elveseter in 1992. It has since become a well-visited tourist attraction.
Søyla has a long and special history. It was originally intended to be Norway's national monument, and was to be placed outside the Storting.
The sculptor Wilhelm Rasmussen won the commission announced by the Norwegian government in 1926, in competition with, among others, Gustav Vigeland.
Completion was shelved
When the Second World War ended in 1945, the pillar was still not finished. The completion of the artwork was then shelved, because the artist had expressed sympathy with the German occupation forces.
It eventually became impossible to erect a national monument made by a man who had served a sentence for treason.
Found the pillar in a shed
In the 1980s, the previous generation's owner of Elveseter Hotell, Åmund Elveseter, came across the elements that were stored in a shed on Skøyen in Oslo. The art collector Elveseter, who during the war was also a member of the Norwegian resistance movement, believed that Norway's national monument deserved a better fate.
He took matters into his own hands, ensured that the pillar was restored and completed, and had it erected at Elveseter in 1992. It has since become a well-visited tourist attraction.
Travel Information
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