World Heritage sites in Sweden

Read more about World Heritage sites in Sweden

The Royal Domain of Drottningholm became Sweden’s very first World Heritage site in 1991. Skogskyrkogården (forest cemetery) in Stockholm became the fifth in 1994. The Agricultural Landscape of Southern Öland became the tenth in 2000, and in 2012 Sweden had its fifteenth World Heritage: the Decorated Farmhouses of Hälsingland.

‘Världsarv i Sverige’ (World Heritage Sites in Sweden) is a non-profit, public welfare interest association for objects in Sweden that have been inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Read more about Sweden’s World Heritage on the association’s homepage.

Link to World Heritage sites in Sweden: http://worldheritagesweden.se/

Sights at the World Heritage site

The Naval Port of Karlskrona

During Sweden’s period of great power in the 17th century, the need grew for a naval base in the south to keep the country together. The leading fortification experts of the time were called to Karlskrona to build the most modern and effective naval base Europe had ever seen. The city was founded in 1680 and its shipbuilding, architecture, city planning, plant engineering and defence technology attracted much attention in Europe in the 18th century. The Naval Port of Karlskrona was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1998.

Link to Google Maps

Agricultural Landscape of Southern Öland

The medieval land division and land use make the World Heritage of the Agricultural Landscape of Southern Öland unique. The values are found in the farmer’s landscape with line villages, fields and pastures. The limestone bedrock and grazing animals provide the conditions for high biological values on the bare limestone soil and coastlands. The Agricultural Landscape of Southern Öland was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2000.

Link to Google Maps

The Hanseatic Town of Visby, Gotland

Visby is a characteristic Hanseatic town with a ring wall, church ruins, well-preserved street system and small-scale buildings from the Middle Ages onwards. The Hanseatic Town of Visby was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1995.

The Hanseatic Town of Visby, Gotland Link to Google Maps

Varberg Radio Station

Varberg Radio Station in Grimeton represents a decisive stage in the development of wireless telecommunication. The long wave transmitter with the gigantic multiple areal is the only one of its kind that has been preserved out of tens of similar facilities built in the 1920s around the world. Varberg Radio Station was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2004.

Varberg Radio Station Link to Google Maps

Rock Carvings in Tanum

Tanum is part of a site with rock carvings from the Bronze Age with 1500 known carvings so far. It is a significant and unusual prehistoric pictorial treasure that has been carved into the smooth rock faces. The Rock Carvings in Tanum were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1994.

Rock Carvings in Tanum Link to Google Maps

Skogskyrkogården, Stockholm

At Skogskyrkogården cemetery, the landscape and architecture blend to form a coherent design. The cemetery is an outstanding site from the first half of the 20th century and has served as a model for forest cemeteries the world over. Skogskyrkogården was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1994.

Skogskyrkogården, Stockholm Link to Google Maps

Birka and Hovgården, Ekerö

Birka and Hovgården are a Viking Age town and royal estate on the islands of Björkö and Adelsö in Lake Mälaren, the centre of one of Sweden’s main districts. The cultural landscape, ancient remains and museum with models and finds provide a picture of what the life and town were like in ancient times. Birka and Hovgården were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1993.

Birka and Hovgården, Ekerö Link to Google Maps

Royal Domain of Drottningholm, Ekerö

The Royal Domain of Drottningholm is an exceptionally well-preserved royal domain from the 17th and 18th centuries constructed according to French prototypes. The Chinese Pavilion and the theatre, which is unique in the world, are particularly valuable. The auditorium remains unchanged since its completion in 1766. The Royal Domain of Drottningholm became Sweden’s first World Heritage site in 1991.

Royal Domain of Drottningholm, Ekerö Link to Google Maps

Engelsberg Ironworks, Fagersta

Engelsberg is a well-preserved ironworks with buildings and industrial facilities intact from the 18th and 19th centuries. It was this type of ironworks that made Sweden one of the world’s leading iron producers. The works is part of Ecomuseum Bergslagen. Engelsberg Ironworks was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1993.

Engelsberg Ironworks, Fagersta Link to Google Maps

The Mining Area of the Great Copper Mountain in Falun

The shiny red metal was shipped from the copper mine in Falun to become roofs for churches and palaces all over Europe. Today, the Great Copper Mountain and the surrounding landscape are unique remains from Sweden’s earliest history as an industrial nation. The Mining Area of the Great Copper Mountain in Falun was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2001.

The Mining Area of the Great Copper Mountain in Falun Link to Google Maps

The High Coast/Kvarken Archipelago, Ångermanland

The High Coast is a magnificent, hilly stretch of coast by the Baltic Sea. The area provides a clear and concentrated picture of the geological forms and development of the vegetation conditions and cultural history that characterise the land areas that have risen from the sea since the last ice age. The High Coast was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2000.

The High Coast/Kvarken Archipelago, Ångermanland Link to Google Maps

The Church Village of Gammelstad, Luleå

A church village is a collection of cottages and stables by a Norrland parish church where long-distance parishioners had their permanent place for their church visits. Gammelstad, which developed into a church village in the beginning of the 17th century, is alone in bringing together two types of Nordic wooden towns: the church village and the fortified town. The Church Village of Gammelstad was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1996.

The Church Village of Gammelstad, Luleå Link to Google Maps

The Laponian Area, Lapland

Laponia is one of the last big wildernesses in Western Europe. Four national parks and two nature reserves together make up the 9400 km2 area. Laponia is located in Gällivare and the municipalities of Jokkmokk. The area consists of wild and unspoilt land with high mountains and open mountain plateaus, immense forests and extensive marshes. The area is also the Sami people’s cultural landscape. The Laponian Area was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1996.

The Laponian Area, Lapland Link to Google Maps

Struve Geodetic Arc, Norrbotten

Thanks to the astronomer Wilhelm Struve’s triangulation along a meridian, it was possible to prove that the earth is flattened by the poles. The measurements, the first of their kind, were made between 1816 and 1855. There were 265 measurement points from the Arctic Ocean down to the Black Sea. Of these, 34 are part of the World Heritage, which spans ten countries, and four measurement points are in Sweden. They are Perra-vaara in the Municipality of Haparanda, Pajtas-vaara in the Municipality of Kiruna, Pullinki in Korpilombolo and Kerrojupukka in the Municipality of Pajala. Struve Geodetic Arc was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2005.

Link to Google Maps

Decorated Farmhouses of Hälsingland

The seven Decorated Farmhouses of Hälsingland represent about 1000 farmhouses of cultural heritage value. The unique about the farmhouses is that the people in Hälsingland built more and larger festivities rooms than farmers did in the rest of the world. There are more decorated domestic interiors preserved in Hälsingland than anywhere else in the world.

Decorated Farmhouses of Hälsingland Link to Google Maps