This exhibition focuses on the history of whaling along the coast of Finnmark. From the occasional whale hunt in preindustrial times, to the era of large scale whaling, which ended in 1903 after a curious incident known as the “Mehamn rebellion”. Whaling has been the topic of many a heated debate ever since, and the exhibition offers an insight into later developments, including legislation, lobby positions and environmental factors. More on whaling and the Mehamn rebellion>>

In 2009, it has been 200 years since Svend Foyn was born in Tønsberg. Gamvik Museum marks this anniversary for the man who became the ”Father of modern whaling”, because he also established a whaling station in Mehamn (in today’s Gamvik Municipality).

The year of 1809 was also a year when other world famous people were born, including Charles Darwin, Edgar Allan Poe and Abraham Lincoln.

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