THE AMERICA N-S CANDINAVIAN REVIEW 
151 
this Norwegian mountain valley, where now some of the proudest 
tamilies claim descent from her. Certain it is, at least, that the Hjel- 
tarstue, with its ample spaces and fine proportions, has been the home 
of aristocrats. With it the simple type of dwelling centering around 
one fire-place seems to have reached perfection. The walls are hung 
with very fine tapestries picturing with considerable detail a series of 
stories from the Bible, and with these in their places, with the candles 
lit on the long table, the fire glowing on the hearth, and the floor strewn 
with juniper, it must have been singularly satisfying in its harmony 
and its air of warmth and snugness. 
The many-roomed house came in with the stove. A particularly 
fine example of this later style of peasant architecture is Oyrgaarden, 
from 1785, which, like the two ramloftstuer, has been brought from 
Skjaak in the very northernmost part of Gudbrandsdalen. Not even 
at Skansen in Stockholm, the prototype of all Northern outdoor mu¬ 
seums, have I seen anything finer than Oyrgaarden and the Bjornstad- 
gaard at Maihaugen. The Swedes have a love of bright colors, ex¬ 
pressed especially in the painted tapestries which are characteristic of 
their peasant art, but the Norwegians excell in elaborate carvings that 
give their productions a wonderful mellowness and richness. There 
is an almost Renaissance exuberance in the decorations that overflow 
even on the most utilitarian objects, but the perfect harmony and 
fitness of all appointments prevent any sense of excessive ornamenta¬ 
tion. The doors and casements are carved in flat relief and painted in 
the dull, soft blues and reds typical of Gudbrandsdalen. The same 
general style is repeated in the stationary cupboards, the chests, the 
A Magnificent Chest Carved in 1735 
