A special two for one Folklore Thursday and Norway’s National Day
As well as being a sports-themed #FolkloreThursday today, 17th May, is Norway’s national day! An official public holiday, the day celebrates Norway’s recognition as an independent kingdom from when the constitution was declared in 1814.
The archives team here has fond memories of Norway and so to mark the day we thought we would share this beautiful headscarf from the Ski Club of Great Britain Collection.
Skier detail
As the accompanying text, written by Arnold Lunn, explains, the scarf was presented to the wife of the president of the Ski Club in 1946 at Holmenkollen ski resort, at the first ski gathering to be held there after liberation from Nazi occupation. The text is incredibly poignant, moving, and evocative of a significant moment in history at a local, national and international level.
Text accompanying the headscarf
And for our folkloric link from the same collection here is a charm featuring Ullr, the god of skiing mentioned in Norwegian saga. The charm is based on a drawing from 900 A.D. Ullr was an excellent archer, hunter, skater, and skier. He was a son of Sif and stepson of Thor; handsome, warlike, and often invoked before a duel [H/T to Norse Mythology for the information].
Skiing charm featuring Ullr
Kat and Nat