Allmannajuvet is a
ravine or
canyon
A canyon (from ; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), or gorge, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosion, erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tenden ...
located along the river ''Storelva'' in the municipality of
Sauda in
Rogaland
Rogaland () is a Counties of Norway, county in Western Norway, bordering the North Sea to the west and the counties of Vestland to the north, Vestfold og Telemark to the east and Agder to the east and southeast. In 2020, it had a population of 47 ...
county,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
. The ravine is located in a rural, forested area along the
Norwegian County Road 520 between the town of
Sauda and the village of
Hellandsbygda
Hellandsbygda or Hellandsbygd is a village in Sauda municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The village is located in a river valley about northeast of the town of Sauda. The village is surrounded by forested mountains with the County Road 520 ...
.
This was the site of a large
zinc
Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...
mine which began operations in 1881 and closed in 1899, due to the changing market prices of zinc and high extraction costs. At its peak, the mine had 160 employees and was a major part of zinc exports from Norway.
In 2001,
Peter Zumthor was commissioned by the Norwegian road administration to design a rest area, museum and cafe. After a long period with planning and design changes, the construction started in 2008. It took 8 years before the project was finished, but in September 2016 the official opening was held.
The museum is open for visitors in the summer time from June-August, and for groups ordering in advance the rest of the year.
Three buildings are finished, and only the old path leading to the mines are yet to open. During a flood in 2014 parts of the path and a bridge were washed away, and work is now under way to repair the damage.
The former mine site is maintained as an annex of
Ryfylke Museum.
/ref>
References
External links
Ryfylke Museum
Canyons and gorges of Norway
Zinc mines in Norway
Sauda
Landforms of Rogaland
{{Rogaland-geo-stub