Know your cultural heritage

The mission of Varkaus Museum Center Konsti is to maintain, manage and produce cultural heritage information and related materials available to the public, and to provide content-based research and services. In addition to storing collections, the museums also maintain and share information about cultural environments.

Varkaus Museum Center Konsti has extensive collections. The collections of the Konsti Museum Center mainly include objects, photographs and archival material relating to the industrial history of Varkaus  and the city of Varkaus. On these pages you can explore the museum collections, as well as the historic environments of Varkaus.

The contents of the Varkaus Museum Center Konsti are also easily accessible from the comfort of your couch. Interested in old photographs, for example? Explore the collections at finna.fi Or shipbuilding history? Then go to laivadata.fi

Varkaus' history is also visible in the city's streets and built environments. Through a variety of mobile routes, you can learn more about the history around us.

The Mobile Routes is a mobile app shared by Finnish museums, with guides that work on all smartphones and tablets without a separate app. The following guides have been published about Varkaus:

Wanderings in Old Varkaus is an experience tour that brings the stories to life. You can walk the route in the order you want with the help of information boards and/or a paper map. Paper maps are available at the Varkaus Museum Center Konsti.

For the best experience, view the augmented reality stories on your mobile device from the information boards or on the paper map from the QR code. In addition to the images and text on the map and signs, the QR codes will reveal animated videos, 3D modelling and audio narration. Through the content, you can meet Walter Ahlström, the founder of the city of Varkaus, and see the former Varkaus sawmill designed by Alvar Aalto that no longer exists.

The tour is available in Finnish and English and is accessible year round.

The map-based routes built into the service run in a web browser, without the need for a separate app. They work best on your mobile device on the spot. Check out the mobile routes at tarinasoitin.fi/varkaus.