The collections of the Maritime Museum of Finland are formed by objects, vessels, documents and images that provide a diverse view into the past and present of Finland’s maritime history.
The artefact collections include over 20,000 items and the picture collection 257,000 photographs. The document collection contains 150 shelf meters of documents, as well as 8,000 maps and drawings, mainly ship and boat illustrations. The picture collection is managed by the Picture Collections of the Finnish Heritage Agency, which is also in charge of the related customer services, access from here(ulkoinen linkki).
The Maritime Museum’s collections are divided into three main themes: material connected to underwater archaeology, material related to the state administration of civil maritime transport, and material on commercial seafaring. In addition, the Maritime Museum also preserves material regarding boats and boating, as well as shipbuilding and boatbuilding. The extensive themes of marine fishing and inland waterway transport are not included in the acquisition plan. The Forum Marinum Maritime Centre is responsible for preserving naval history on a national level.
The collections of objects, documents and pictures are expanded mainly through donations. Underwater archaeological artefacts are accepted into the collections via field work conducted by the Finnish Heritage Agency’s own operators or other parties who have been granted permission.
Please submit donation offers through the Finnish Heritage Agency’s Permits and Collections Service(ulkoinen linkki). Reports of discoveries of shipwrecks and their parts believed to have sunk more than 100 years ago should be submitted through the Finnish Heritage Agency’s Ilppari(ulkoinen linkki) service.
Finnish Museums Online
The Finnish Museums Online service provides off-site access to a selection of artefacts and photographs on display at the Maritime Museum of Finland. All the items and images are stored in the MuseumPlus -museum database and the volume of information available is constantly growing as more information is vetted and added.
Artifact Collections
The Maritime Museum of Finland’s collections include approximately 20,000 items. The collections feature, among other things, navigational instruments, lighthouse equipment, ship’s gear, scale models of ships and boats, maritime-themed art, and seafarers’ personal equipment.
Document Collection
The Maritime Museum of Finland’s document collection includes, among other things, ship and boat drawings, nautical charts, ship inspection documents and crew lists, ship’s logs and engine room logs, small private and corporate archives, and seafarers’ memoirs.
Picture Collection
The Maritime Museum of Finland’s image collection contains around 257,000 photographs. The collection features, amongst other things, sailing ships and motor vessels, work and leisure on board ships, group photographs of crews, the activities of the Finnish Maritime Administration (including icebreaking, pilotage and lighthouses), as well as ports and cargo handling.
Finnish Mercantile Marine Database
The Finnish Mercantile Marine Database contains information about Finnish merchantile ships, spanning years 1921–1987. Most of data comes from the “Suomen kauppalaivasto” series of books, published by Finnish Maritime Administration, with some additional information from other sources.
Museum ships
Icebreaker Tarmo
A legend of winter seafaring.
Lightship Kemi
The last lightship of Finland
Boat Collection
The national boat collection, which is managed by the Maritime Museum of Finland, includes over 100 workboats and recreational boats..
Information about the Maritime Museum of Finland’s collections
Information service requests
Information service requests with appointment trough Vellamo’s website.
Donations
The collections of artefacts, documents and images are mainly built up through donations. Maritime archaeological artefacts are added to the collections through fieldwork carried out by The Finnish Heritage Agency itself or by other authorised organisations.