Record attendance at Gottorf Castle: Over 53,000 for the Viking exhibition!

Record attendance at Gottorf Castle: Over 53,000 for the Viking exhibition!

Gottorf Castle in Schleswig can proudly boast a new visitor record: a total of 53,322 people visited the impressive exhibition “Viking Twilight. A Turning Point in the North”. The influx of visitors is not only a great success for the castle, but also for the partner institutions - the Museum of Archeology, the Viking Museum Haithabu and the Leibniz Center for Archeology (LEIZA) - which collaborated to organize this impressive show. The exhibition ended last weekend and was reported by the state museums. In addition, this marks the most successful special exhibition in the 26-year history of the Gottorf Castle Foundation, as NDR reports.

But what makes the exhibition so special? “Viking Twilight” was dedicated to the exciting late phase of the Viking Age and illuminates the political and economic changes that led to a turning point. In 1066, when a Slavic army attacked and destroyed the sea trading center of Haithabu, not only did this place become unforgettable in the history books, but the foundation stone was also laid for the founding of the sea trading center of Schleswig. In this year, William, Duke of Normandy, conquered England - an event that had a decisive influence on the course of history. This exciting time is impressively presented on an exhibition area of ​​over 1,000 square meters, as landesmuseen.sh highlights.

Insights into the past

The exhibition offers a variety of archaeological finds and current research results from the late Viking Age. Visitors were able to enjoy fascinating exhibits, including treasure troves of gold and silver as well as ancient written material. Particularly noteworthy is the reprint of the famous Bayeux Tapestry, which is 68.38 meters long and 53 centimeters wide. A fragment of the carpet that was discovered in the state archives was also shown publicly for the first time. Further highlights include the Morsum treasure trove from the island of Sylt and the magnificent silver brooch from Sutton, which comes from the British Museum.

The exhibition is trilingual and almost entirely translated into sign language, which underlines its inclusive concept. There is also a broad accompanying program with guided tours, workshops and scientific events, which is supplemented by a research laboratory. The project management will be taken over by Dr. Ralf Bleile and Prof. Dr. Dieter Quast, while the curators Dr. Thorsten Lemm, Franziska Lichtenstein M.A. and Dr. Volker Hilberg ensures the successful content.

Looking into the future

The castle is already planning the next exhibition entitled “TORF”, which will open on the Museum Island in Schleswig from December 10th. Here guests can look forward to an exciting show of works by the internationally celebrated artist Daniel Richter.

What is particularly noteworthy is that these successes take place in a context in which younger generations, such as Millennials, are increasingly demanding experiential offerings and cultural events. This generation brings a breath of fresh air to visitor numbers and shows that interactive and well-designed exhibitions generate great interest. In fact, Millennials, born between 1981 and 1996, are known to prioritize values ​​such as community and experiences over material goods, which is also reflected in the increased number of visitors to Gottorf Castle, as Wikipedia reports.

Gottorf Castle has shown a good knack for responding to the needs of visitors and creating attractive events that bring history to life. It will be interesting to see what the future holds and what new visitor records could be set!