Friday 12 June 2015

Waldenarsudde in Stockholm

 
The island of Djurgarden has many attractions which include: the ABBA museum; Junibacken, the children's museum, devoted to Pippi Longstocking, the protagonist of the series of children's books created by Astrid Lindgren; the Vasa Museum that houses the 17th century Vasa warship that sank off the coast of Stockholm on its maiden voyage in 1628; Grona Lund, the amusement park; the Biological Museum; the Aquarium; Nordiska Museet, Sweden's National Museum of cultural history; Skansen, the open air museum; and many more - the list is endless.
 
Waldenarsudde is another attraction, a waterfront property with beautiful grounds and fantastic views. We spent a whole day there.
 
 

 
Starting from Slussen we took the ferry to Djurgarden and then the tram and we ended up here - a small little harbour where the boats of the rich who live in this area are moored.
 
 


We took the path that would take us to the grounds of Waldenarsudde.


 

It was a very pleasant walk and once inside the grounds





we came upon this wonderful sculpture




Paret by Liss Eriksson




The grounds are full of sculptures but this was the star for me - it is stunning
 
 



it was a short walk before we reached the house




a three-storey mansion, designed by Ferdinand Boberg,  and owned by Prince Eugen from 1899 until his death in 1947.

Easels that been set up for the art lessons that are one of the activities offered here





Herakles, by Antoine Bourdelle
 
 


lots of colour in the gardens




and the views are breath taking




The Old House where the Prince lived while the mansion was being built



 
the views are an integral part of these gardens
 

 


and because the whole complex is built on a peninsula, they are ever-present. Across the water,  the Photography Museum on Sodermalm



 
the path circles round the peninsula
 

 


and we very soon reached Rodin's The Thinker



 
and on our right, another sculpture, one that would have to be investigated later
 

 


This spot provided good views of the house, and I immediately spotted Nike of Samothrace on the terrace




we walked up the steps to have a better look at Nike which was cast in bronze by Gustave Leblanc Barbedienne




once we had reached the terrace another sculpture caught our eye




Triton by Carl Milles




This is where The Thinker is so we went to have a closer look
 
 


the views ever-present




 
still on the terrace, Kvinnohuvud by Christian Eriksson
 



Leaving the terrace, we re-joined the path and came across the sculpture we had seen from above





view of the house




lots of colour
 
 
 
 
 
we arrived at this cosy seating area
 
 
 

 

facing a pool and this sculpture



 
Later in the afternoon I came back here and sat for half an hour enjoying the views while Ken went to do some further exploring.
 

 
 

 
The path led to the 18th century windmill
 
 
 


an oil mill, built in the 1780s - there are apparently only five of those remaining in the world




 
we walked to the end of the path
 
 

 


and caught glimpses of some wonderful houses
 

 
 
 
 
as I said earlier, some very rich people live in this area
 

 
 


we stopped at the old stables on our way back

 
 


an old cannon
 
 

 

a different view of the mill





and we reached another terrace
 
 
 

 
 
which is in front of the gallery, the second main building on the site. The gallery was built in 1913. We later went in and saw an exhibition of the paintings of German Expressionist Emil Nolde.
 

 
 


Skorden by Ivar Johnsson
 
 
 


More sculptures




even some hidden in the flower beds





We sat here for a while as it was very lovely and peaceful





There is a copy of this bronze sculpture inside the house, carved from marble, this time





and look! she's got a little frog by her feet.





We did go in even though I find the interiors of these grand houses quite boring. This is the prince's library.




 
I loved the sitting room though - so much light pouring in
 

 
 


and the views, of course




between the two windows you can see the marble copy of the sculpture that is in the garden.





And last, but not least, the wood burning stove - I developed a bit of an obsession while we were in Stockholm.

 
 

2 comments:

  1. Now that we are back and connected again, I have been catching up with your Stockholm posts. What an excellent comprehensive guide you have provided, thanks.
    I like you am attracted to those old wood stoves with their ceramic exteriors.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Welcome back, Olga.

      We loved Stockholm - it's the most amazing city.

      Delete