Quick, what buildings do you see when you think of museums? Surely not none? However, the Vallby Friluftsmuseum is not in fact housed in a building per se—it’s an open air museum in Västerås, located just 2 kilometres north of the city centre.

The museum exhibits the cultural heritage of local Swedish folk from both the city and countryside, with the oldest exhibition dating back to the 17th century. It strives to recreate these historical atmospheres with as much authenticity as possible, displaying preserved wood and stone houses, endangered farm animals and various ornamental and cultural handicrafts. A type of exhibition the museum refers to as ‘living history’, the Vallby Friluftsmuseum aims to provide a more immersive and interactive experience into the lives of the locals back in their time.

Specific areas that have already recreated include a farmstead, a city quarter, a copper works and more recently even a mission hall and village school, all of which give a proper insight with regard to how Swedes use to go about their daily lives back in the day. Overall, these exhibits span over a total of 40 buildings and surely have much to offer viewers with its vast displays!