The Cobalt Works

Phone:
+47 32 77 88 00

Address:
Koboltveien 11 | Modum, 3340, Norway

Blaafarveværket, or the Blue Colour Works, was a mining and industrial company located at Åmot in Modum in Buskerud, Norway, which existed from 1776 to 1898. The works mined cobalt ore and manufactured by smelting blue cobalt glass and cobalt blue pigment. It is currently a large open-air industrial museum and an art gallery; it is the largest and best preserved mine museum in Europe, and one of Norway's most visited attractions.The company was founded by King Christian VII in 1776 and was one of the few companies with lasting significance from the age of mercantilism, played an important role in Norwegian trade with Denmark, the Netherlands and the Far East and had a decisive impact on the Norwegian economy in the period around 1814. In 1822 the company was sold to the Berlin banker Wilhelm Christian Benecke and Benjamin Wegner, and their ownership lasted until 1849, a period regarded as the company's heydays and during which it became the largest industrial company of the country. The company went bankrupt in 1849 in the wake of the revolutions of 1848 and competition from synthetic ultramarine, but a greatly reduced activity continued until 1898. From 1968 Blaafarveværket has been made available to the public as a museum and art gallery. It is presented to the public like the mining company it was around 1840 during its heydays.
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Attraction Location

The Cobalt Works Videos

Blaafarveværket July 2011

Blaafarveværket is one of the main tourist attractions in Buskerud county in central east Norway. It's an old cobalt mine and surround works, which today is not operational, but instead is a museum. In addition to the museum commemmorating the mine and the works, there's a celebrated art museum with a new exhibition put on every summer. There's also a store that sells all sorts of glass items colored with cobalt, there's places to eat, a lake you can go swimming in, and the area itself is very scenic. I think there's also a petting zoo kind of place, but we didn't go there this visit.

This footage is from July 2011 when I visited with my family.

Haugfoss in Åmot

Please watch: Laberint d'Horta And Park Guell
A Day Tour around Barcelona --~--
The Hydropower plant in Haugfossen Falls is then reason why the cobalt work is situated below the waterfalls. The crushing plant, watercourses and buildings on both sides of the falls exploited the tremendous power of the water.

Jefferson Airplane and White Rabbit at Haugfossen

White Rabbit was written by Grace Slick and recorded by Jefferson Airplane for their 1967 album Surrealistic Pillow.

The Haugfossen (Haug waterfall) in Norway provided the power for mill and mortar at Blaafarveværket, or the Blue Colour Works. This was a mining and industrial company which was active from 1776 to 1898. The works mined cobalt ore. It is currently a large open-air industrial museum and an art gallery; it is the largest and best preserved mine museum in Europe, and one of Norway's most visited attractions.

Nyfossum July 2011

Nyfossum is the old technical director's residence. He was the head of the cobalt works and as such had to live in style. :-) Today the house is a museum. One of the outbuildings has exhibitions in the summers, a new one every year. There's also a store and a little cafe. It's worth going up there just for the beautiful garden. A very idyllic place.