Summertime fun: A trip to Gripsholm

Me and my darling spouse made a day-trip to the little town by the Mälaren lake, Mariefred, last Wednesday.

While the town itself is charming, filled with tiny doll-sized houses and situated so beautifully by the lake...
...the Thing To See is the Gripsholm palace.





The palace not only houses the National Portrait Collection which features portraits from the 16th century to our days, but also many examples on architecture and interiors from decades past (and of course all those little quirky things one loves about old castles: small staircases leading to no-one-knows, dusky dungeons and creaking floorboards...)

Photography was not allowed, and I was too chicken to take stealth-shots (without flash, of course) because of the many guards...

That means that the gift shop got me to buy a number of post cards, at least!

Forgive my old, faithful scanner his faults:

Prince Fredrik Adolf, Duke of Ostrogothia, painted by Roslin in 1770

Courtisane, a dog. David Klöcker Ehrenstral's atelier, second half 17th century


Carl Fredrik von Breda, self-portrait


The hen-picture, with queen Lovisa Ulrika's ladies-in-waiting. Mid-18th century, possibly by Johan Pasch (if you really must compare women to poultry, I suppose this is the most stylish way of doing so...)


Princess Sofia Albertina's rooms.


The green salon. See why I wanted to take pictures so badly?!?



Duke Carl's chamber. Mostly original 16th century.


One of the really unique sights: King Gustaf III's theatre. Tiny, but fully working with machinery and all!


This charming fella's name is Adolf Ludvig Stierneld but I knew nothing about him when I bought the card. Now I know that he was the person who started to organize the portrait collection at the palace, which would have suited his history sense well. He collected historical documents and was considered something of an authority and expert in his own time. Today, however, many of his so-called "historical documents" have been exposed as blatant forgeries made by himself, often to make his ancestors look more important.

***

I have visited Gripsholm many times since my childhood but it's like a new experience every time, because you always discover something you didn't see before. There are so many rooms, so unique in their own way, and so many fantastic portraits... And if that's not anough for you, then there's always...

THE LION!

Before we left for Stockholm, we visited the town's small but charming museum which showed the home of a well-to-do family in the late 19th century.

I could take pictures, and we can haz costumes:

...and creepy dolls.

After a cup of coffee and home-baked pastries in the museum's lovely garden, we boarded the 107-year old steamship Mariefred and had a very pleasant journey home!