Item collections

The collections contain approximately one million objects that provide opportunities for stories, facts, knowledge and experiences about people's lives, conditions and societies from the Stone Age to modern times. The items together with the photo archive, the archive and the library provide an exciting historical picture of how we people in Kalmar County have lived up to today. 

The collection started in 1871 when Kalmar County Antiquities Association was formed. The association laid the foundation for the fundraising activities, primarily by receiving several large archaeological collections and church art. Gradually, clothing and textiles, objects that belonged to the home, both the common people and the upper classes, shipping, trade, handicrafts and military objects were added. Objects in the categories art with cultural-historical motifs and building maintenance are also collected. Specialties since the 1980s are marine archeological objects, through the investigations of the royal ship Kronan's wreck site and objects related to the artist Jenny Nyström. The collections also include the objects at Wimmerströmska gården in Västervik and Krusenstiernska gården in Kalmar. The object collections are made available at DigitaltMuseum as the objects are inventoried and photographed. Every day you can take part in new objects.

Items that are incorporated into the collections receive inventory numbers and are registered and cataloged in the main manual catalog and in the Primus database. The number of objects can be estimated at about one million because an inventory number can consist of a large number of objects. The items have usually been acquired through gifts, purchases and bargaining.

Do not hesitate to contact us if you have questions about the museum's collection of objects. Are you curious about what an object antiquarian does and how we work with the object collections? Feel free to follow us on Instagram!