Rygnestadtunet
View of the Rygnestadloftet
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 Location of the museum
Location of the museum
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| Established | 1940 |
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| Coordinates | 59°15′46″N 7°29′23″E / 59.2629°N 07.4896°ECoordinates: 59°15′46″N 7°29′23″E / 59.2629°N 07.4896°E |
| Type | Open-air museum |
| Owner | Setesdal Museum |
| Website | setesdalsmuseet.no |
Rygnestadtunet is an open-air museum at Nordigard farm in northern Rygnestad in the municipality of Valle in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It is located in the Setesdal region of Norway, near the junction of the Norwegian National Road 9 and Norwegian County Road 45, about 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) north of the village of Valle. The farm museum today looks exactly as it did when it was deserted in 1919. The farm was legally protected in 1923, it was purchased by the Setesdal Museum in 1938, and it was opened to the public as a museum in 1940. Excavations in the area indicate that the site has been populated since at least 900 AD.
Rygnestadtunet is an authentic farmyard consisting of a brook mill (1), farmhouse (2), three-story storehouse ("loft") (3), barn and stable (4), sheephouse (5), barn (6), storehouse on pillars ("loft") (7), blacksmiths workshop (8), and sauna (9). (See the adjacent picture for view of each building.) The custom of building a separate house for each purpose was common in the Setesdal valley until the beginning of the World War II. The museum farmyard only includes the old farmyard, which the newer Nordigard farmyard is situated just below the old one that is now a museum.
The most noted of all the buildings is Rygnestadloftet, a storehouse on pillars, built in two stories by Vonde-Åsmund (Åsmund the Evil) (1540-1596) in 1590. Rygnestadloftet is highly valued for its fine proportions, its good craftsmanship, and use of good materials. The cog-joint timber has considerable dimensions. The width of one timber log is enough for the height of the entrance door.
According to tradition, Rygnestaloftet was also designed for defense, and it has served its purpose on some occasions. On the ground floor, there is a little shutter covering an opening leading to an escape tunnel ending in a grove of trees about 10 metres (33 ft) up the hill. The ground floor was used for storing food supplies and there is also a bed. The second floor was used for clothes, textiles, and valuables, and it had an outside balcony. On the rear of the building, there was a so-called "secret" outhouse, ending on the open ground below. In Setesdal, there is no other known example of a similar construction.
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Wikipedia