Birka Museum

Type: Buildings with large spans

No. of storeys: 1

Municipality: Ekerö

Footprint: 650

Year of production: 1996

Architect: Mattsson & Wik Arkitektkontor AB

Contractor: Kaj Lahtinen and Lars Björk at L & B Bygg, Upplands Väsby

Client: Annika Richert at the Swedish National Heritage Board 

 

The museum has the feel of a summer house, sitting comfortably amongst the natural beauty of the reeded shoreline. A barn-like hall protects the collections, while protruding eaves provide cover for the visitors with their picnics. Posts, planks and boards are the building’s base components, accentuating the thinness and elegance of the uninsulated wooden structure. The broad, exposed roof structure brings together the space of the large hall, despite the dividing walls of the exhibition. High rooflights, cut from the roof with Japanese simplicity, emphasise the delicacy of the building, which is concealed behind the everyday look of the façades.