As early as the 11th century, osmunda iron was packed in barrels in Norberg and shipped as export goods to the Hansa cities in Germany.
- During the Middle Ages, Norberg was the first to be a major exporter of iron across the Baltic Sea, says Lars-Erik Lärnemark cab guide at the new Lapphyttan.
Lars-Erik Lärnemark has participated in the work of building the blast furnace since the mid-1980s.
He explains that the reconstruction was made according to how researchers and experts assumed that the construction technology was built in the Middle Ages.
The fifth estate
- Previously, the miners here in Bergslagen were assumed to be farmers who were mining ore on the side.
But with the reconstruction of the cabin, history has been rewritten.
The miners were qualified professionals with an impressive export network.
They were the fifth estate with much power.
The reconstruction began to be built in the early 2000s, but it was not until 2012 that the smelter produced iron for the first time.
Among other things, the difficulties lay in finding a balance so that the bubbles did not go too fast or too slow and thus cooled by the process.
But after a series of failed attempts, over 100 kilos of iron have been produced.
- There is a doctoral dissertation that says that Norberg is not just the cradle of iron but the cradle of the Swedish export industry.
When the cabin is up and running, it is a time machine, says Lars-Erik Lärnemark.