Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society in Hammerfest 2013

The Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society or Polar Bear Club (

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

''Isbjørnklubben'', "Polar Bear Club") locates a small exhibition in the town of

Hammerfest Hammerfest (; sme, Hámmerfeasta ) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. Hammerfest is the northernmost town in the world with more than 10,000 inhabitants. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Hammerf ...

Troms og Finnmark Troms og Finnmark (; sme, Romsa ja Finnmárku ; fkv, Tromssa ja Finmarkku; fi, Tromssa ja Finnmark, lit. Troms and Finnmark in English), is a county in northern Norway that was established on 1 January 2020 as the result of a regional reform. ...

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 the ...

. The significance of the polar bear is that this animal is the town's

mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fi ...

and

heraldic crest A crest is a component of a heraldic display, consisting of the device borne on top of the helm. Originating in the decorative sculptures worn by knights in tournaments and, to a lesser extent, battles, crests became solely pictorial after th ...

. For all its remoteness, Hammerfest has a long history as a trading port, and Polar Bear Club sets out to commemorate this. In the museum's single room are a variety of mementos of the early life of Hammerfest, including a profusion of stuffed animals, early

Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, N ...

hunting, traveling and camping equipment, and a gallery of photographs, paintings, drawings and writings of and from the town's history. These depict the town as it was in previous centuries, showing that as far back as the seventeenth century, this tiny town was a nexus for travelers and traders in the far north and a meeting point for the isolated people of North Norway, traders sailing up from southern

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

and hunters and traders coming west from the

Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceans. It spans an area of approximately and is known as the coldest of all the oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, a ...

and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

. Founded in 1963 by two local businessmen, the Polar Bear Club is not particularly ancient. Primarily, it is a somewhat jokey amenity for tourists. Although entrance to the actual exhibition is free of charge, visitors are encouraged to join the Society, which is rewarded with a membership pack, the contents of which include a certificate signed by the actual mayor, a sticker, a membership card and a lapel pin made of silver and enamel. Since the only way to join is in person at the Polar Bear Society, this pin signifies as proof of visiting this remote place.

References

External links

Isbjørnklubben i Hammerfest website
{{coord, 70, 39, 52.75, N, 23, 40, 52.25, E, region:NO_type:landmark_source:dewiki, display=title Hammerfest Museums in Troms og Finnmark Local museums in Norway Museums established in 1963 Culture of the Arctic 1963 establishments in Norway