The Borderlands Museum is located in a picturesque area near the town of Kirkenes. Its exhibition focuses on the Second World War, Sámi culture and the establishment of the mining company Sydvaranger AS. Several exhibitions introduce the nature, culture and history of the Russian border municipality of Sør-Varanger.
The museum's exhibition on the Second World War reflects the Norwegians' perception of the event. In neighbouring Finland, for example, it is difficult to find exhibits testifying to its co-operation with the Soviets. And in the Borderlands Museum, on the contrary, there is a whole panorama of how a Norwegian partisan from the observation point transmits to Soviet troops data on the movements of the German fleet. Here next to the Norwegian flag hangs a Soviet flag in honour of the liberation of Kirkenes in 1944, the only town that the Soviet troops had time to liberate on the territory of Norway. Soviet troops liberated before the German surrender.
However, the main attraction of the museum is the Soviet Il-2 aeroplane, which was shot down in 1944 over Norway and fell into a lake. It was later lifted from the the bottom and restored. The image of this particular exhibit is a kind of the museum's trademark.
In the Museum of Borderlands you will also be able to get acquainted with the work of of the famous Sami artist John Andreas Savio. His paintings depict the life of the Sámi people and the amazing nature of the region.
