Juhls Silver Gallery

Regine and Frank Juhls, a Danish weaver and a German silversmith, came to Kautokeino in the 1950s, initially to repair silver for Sami families, and began building a house and workshop on the open tundra in 1959. They kept adding to it over decades in an organic way, so the building now rambles through a series of rooms in different styles, with a domed Afghan-influenced hall, timber and turf sections, and windows facing the plateau. It functions as a working silver workshop, a gallery selling their jewellery, and a display of Sami silver, Afghan textiles and art collected on their travels. Guided tours run through the rooms, and the setting, with nothing around it but tundra, is part of the point.

What you actually see

• The rambling building - rooms added by hand over six decades.
• The domed hall - an Afghan-influenced space within the complex.
• The silver workshop - jewellery designed and made on site.
• The collections - Sami silver, textiles and art gathered over years.

When to go

June to August for the midnight sun and easiest access; February to April for winter light and the Easter festival period in Kautokeino. The gallery opens year-round but hours are longer in summer.

Honest expectations

The gallery is a commercial operation and the jewellery is expensive. It is three kilometres from the village on a track that can be difficult in winter. There is no cafe or other facility beyond the shop.

Nearby

Kautokeino village and the Sami Easter Festival are below; Alta lies two hours north.