Tana museum

About the museum

Deanu musea – Tana museum is a River Sámi museum beside the Tana River in Polmak (Buolbmát), which was once the administrative centre of the former Polmak municipality. The main building dates from around 1790 and was built as a trading post. The district was largely spared from burning during the Second World War, so the buildings from the period 1800–1850 are still standing. The museum was founded in 1978 as Tana historie og museumslag (Tana History and Museum Society). In 1985, Tana municipality bought the inn in Polmak, which became the starting point for the cultural history museum. In 2010 the museum became part of Stiftelsen Tana og Varanger museumssiida (the Tana and Varanger Museum Siida Foundation).

The museum is responsible for River Sámi culture in Tana, as well as for sea and fjord Sámi traditions. The Tana valley is the core area of River Sámi culture in Norway, and salmon fishing, boatbuilding, traditional clothing, duodji (Sámi handicraft) and joik have shaped the area. The museum also preserves Finnish, Kven and Norwegian cultural traditions. The municipality owns seven listed buildings on the museum grounds, and the collection comprises about 4,300 objects, including 13 boats.

The main house has two exhibition rooms. On the site stand, among others, Masjokhuset, Hormastabburet and a salmon-fishing cabin from around 1820, and outdoors there is a model of a salmon weir (bođđu). A museum café is open in the summer. The museum is waiting for a new museum building at Tana bridge.

Highlights

• Museum farmstead in Polmak with listed 19th-century buildings
• Main building from around 1790, formerly a trading post
• Collection of 13 boats, including tanabask and river boats
• Exhibition on the Sámi activist Per Fokstad
• Summer café and museum shop

Permanent exhibition

• Utstillingene i hovedhuset – Two exhibition rooms in the main building on the museum grounds in Polmak, on the River Sámi culture and history of the Tana valley.

Founded

1985

Operated by

Stiftelsen Tana og Varanger museumssiida

Admission & discounts

Local residents enter free of charge.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop
• Wi-Fi

Museum café in the summer season serving coffee, tea, soft drinks and waffles. Museum shop and free Wi-Fi for visitors.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit