Kalevala: Runic Culture, Craft and Architecture

Kalevala draws attention to runic culture and craft: the Rune Singers’ Museum is located in the settlement of Kalevala, and the Lennrot Relict Pine stands in the town centre. The Kalevalatalo Ethnocultural Centre complements these themes with collection work, sightseeing tours and folk craft activities. When looking for a holiday rental, a simple question can be a good place to start: Would you mainly like to explore Kalevala’s cultural offerings, or also take other natural and cultural themes in the Republic of Karelia into account when planning your trip?

Runic Culture, Collections and Craft in Kalevala

The Rune Singers’ Museum is located in the settlement of Kalevala. The museum department at the Kalevalatalo Ethnocultural Centre preserves a collection on the ethnography and history of the northern Karelians. The collection comprises 2,134 items; this number may change over time. A named museum and a collection with a clear ethnographic and historical focus are thus found side by side.

The Ethnocultural Centre offers sightseeing tours of Kalevala. Ask the operator about the current arrangements. Guided tours at the centre’s museums are conducted in Russian and Finnish. As the languages offered may change, it is advisable to check in advance whether these are still available.

The craft department offers folk craft workshops as well as classes as part of ethnocultural educational programmes. The two formats have different focuses: one centres on folk craft, while the other involves classes within an educational programme. If you are interested, ask the centre about current dates.

Architecture is also among the centre’s named themes: it manages the House of Engineer Moberg, described as an architectural monument. Another specific point of interest is the Lennrot Relict Pine in the centre of the settlement of Kalevala. The place was the village of Ukhta until 1963. The museum, the managed architectural monument and the tree thus differ clearly in whether the focus is a collection, a building or a single notable tree.

Nature and Culture in the Republic of Karelia

In the Republic of Karelia, an overview excursion in the Kivach Nature Reserve includes an outdoor walk to Kivach Waterfall, as well as visits to the dendrological collection and the Natural History Museum. The waterfall is on the Suna River in central Karelia and has a drop of 10.7 metres. After the Rhine Falls, it is considered Europe’s second-largest lowland waterfall. For planning how much time to allow, another route description gives a 1,000-metre circular trail through a forest by the bank of the Suna, near the reserve’s excursion area. The excursion along this trail takes 1 to 1.5 hours. Ask the operator about current conditions and booking.

The Kizhi Museum Reserve in the Republic of Karelia offers a different picture of traditional architecture. Its open-air collection comprises 89 monuments of traditional wooden architecture, including old chapels and houses, mills, granaries, threshing barns and drying racks. Visitors can see inside the Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God and peasant houses; traditional peasant crafts are demonstrated in the houses. Here, buildings and crafts are in the foreground, while Kalevalatalo focuses on other cultural themes through its museum department, workshops and educational programmes.

The cultural heritage of the Republic of Karelia also includes the Onega and White Sea petroglyphs. The UNESCO World Heritage site comprises 4,500 Neolithic rock carvings. The Onega petroglyphs number more than 1,200 figures in Pudozhsky District; most are located on the central headlands of Pery Nos, Besov Nos and Kladovets. The White Sea petroglyphs mainly depict hunting and sailing scenes and associated equipment, as well as animal and human footprints. These different motifs offer another perspective on the region’s cultural history alongside Kalevala’s collections and craft themes.

Discover more destinations: Kondopoga, Lakhkolampi, Konchezero, Kostomuksha, Mikli, Veshkelitsa, Vyartsilya, Velikaya Guba

For the main travel overview: Republic of Karelia.