Bengtskär lighthouse and waves crashing on the shore, photographed from the sea. Black and white photograph.
Bengtskär lighthouse and waves crashing on the shore, photographed from the sea. Black and white photograph.

Bengtskär

starting at €90.00

Bengtskär is unique in many ways. Built in 1906, the stone lighthouse is the tallest in the Nordic countries, and its history, with its many adversities, is exceptionally dramatic. It holds special significance not only for the residents of Rosala and Hiittinen, but also for me personally, as I have had the privilege to admire it for 25 years. The Wilsons, who have guided tourism in Bengtskär, became familiar to us when Per took our family to our cottage in the outer archipelago during the spring thaw on his way to the lighthouse. We visited there almost every summer, and I also held a photo exhibition there. At one point, we even donated insulation wool for the Bengtskär staff's sauna.

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Bengtskär is unique in many ways. Built in 1906, the stone lighthouse is the tallest in the Nordic countries, and its history, with its many adversities, is exceptionally dramatic. It holds special significance not only for the residents of Rosala and Hiittinen, but also for me personally, as I have had the privilege to admire it for 25 years. The Wilsons, who have guided tourism in Bengtskär, became familiar to us when Per took our family to our cottage in the outer archipelago during the spring thaw on his way to the lighthouse. We visited there almost every summer, and I also held a photo exhibition there. At one point, we even donated insulation wool for the Bengtskär staff's sauna.

The lighthouse stands at the edge of the world. Smoothly worn steps lead up to the lantern room. From there, you can see the shadows of the clouds reflected in the sea—and the small world of the lighthouse island. Starting in the 1950s, lighthouses began to be left without keepers or even became completely obsolete. It was not until around the turn of the millennium that the cultural and architectural value of these navigational aids, abandoned to the mercy of the weather and vandalism, began to be understood, and efforts were made to save them. Everyone who has helped save even one of our lighthouses has given a gift to all Finns.

Discover my work The Sea That Rinses My Feet  (texts in Finnish, English, and Swedish)

Discover my book Kuohu – Hooked on the Archipelago (texts in Finnish or Swedish)