The ruins from the Middle Ages are the legacy of magnificent facilities: Monasteries, castles and churches. The National Heritage Board is now awarding grants to preserve ruins in 2025.
- Ruins are some of the clearest traces that remain from the Middle Ages in Norway. We must preserve them so that future generations can experience them and learn from them," says Andreas Bjelland Eriksen, Minister of Climate and Environment.
- Ancient monuments have always been vulnerable to the elements. Climate change comes as an added strain, threatening ruins both above and below ground. The ruin grants help to prevent this damage," he says.
The counties of Innlandet, Møre- og Romsdal, Oslo, Telemark, Trøndelag, Vestland and Østfold have received applications for almost NOK 18 million for ruins.
In total, the Directorate for Cultural Heritage is allocating NOK 11.4 million in grants for 2025, and at the same time pledging almost NOK 3.1 million for multi-year projects extending into 2026.
- Ruins are traces of a life lived. They tell us about the lives of great men, bishops and monks in the past, and provide us with knowledge about society in the Middle Ages," says Hanna Geiran, National Heritage Officer.
- But even today, we need to increase our expertise in the walls of the past in combination with contemporary research, so that more craftsmen and conservators can take on assignments on our oldest walls. Here we need to think ahead to strengthen knowledge and interest," says Geiran.
The largest grants go to the county councils that have applied, but the Directorate for Cultural Heritage also gives smaller grants to individual projects to increase knowledge of methods and techniques.
A collaboration between craftsmen and pupils at Melsom upper secondary school in Vestfold has been awarded NOK 100,000. They will be burning their own lime, which will provide great value in terms of skills development and communication. This can help with recruitment to the profession.
A course at Tanum Church in Vestfold is also receiving a grant of NOK 345,000. The course brings together masons from all over the country, and the aim is to disseminate and increase knowledge of traditional conservation and preservation of medieval masonry.
A master's thesis on the recreation of tar glue for use in stone restoration will receive NOK 67,000 to carry out practical experiments. A seminar on medieval archaeology in the countryside will also receive NOK 10,000 to systematize and gather more information about farming, hunting and fishing in the Middle Ages, which largely affects the ruins.
This is what the counties have applied for
Innlandet county council has received applications for grants for, among other things, the Korskirkeruinen church ruin in Hamar, including skills development related to the firing of bricks and the production of lime mortar for restoration work.
Møre og Romsdal county council has received applications for funding for the maintenance of Margaret's ruins and a seminar to increase knowledge about the church ruins and power center at Herøy, Ulstein and Åheim. They are also planning to run a georadar.
Byantikvaren in Oslo is applying for a grant to continue the good conservation work on Hovedøya monastery, which began in 2023. The monastery ruins were partly in very poor condition and the need for further work is great.
Telemark county council has received applications to continue the conservation work on the Kapittelberget ruins in Skien, and to assess the condition of the Bamble church ruins.
Trøndelag County Council has received applications for grants for several ongoing ruin conservation projects.
Vestland County Council has received grant applications for a total of seven projects, including the monastery ruins at Halsnøy and Selje. This includes conservation, mapping and georadar, facilitation and communication.
Østfold County Council has received applications for, among other things, the continuation of work on the St. Nikolas church ruin in Sarpsborg, which started in 2024, and condition assessments of the Tenor church ruin and Værne monastery.
This year's grants to the counties
| County | Application amount | Grants 2025 and commitments 2026 |
| Inland | 2 117 500 | 1 535 000 |
| Møre and Romsdal | 400 000 | 400 000 |
| Oslo BYA | 4 200 000 | 3 600 000 |
| Telemark | 3 067 786 | 2 600 000 |
| Trøndelag | 1 795 875 | 1 450 000 |
| Western Norway | 6 101 074 | 4 660 000 |
| Østfold | 201 500 | 200 000 |
| Total | kr 17,843,735 | NOK 14,445,000 |
