Very characteristic of Stockholm is the southern district of SODERMALM with its picturesque setting and street layout adapted to the rocky terrain. It is reached from the old town (Staden) by a double bridge over the Soderstrom. At this point there is a sluice (Slussen) separating the fresh water of Lake Malar from the salt water of the Baltic. In Sodermalmstorg (on left) is the Katarinahiss, an elevator leading up to a restaurant (alt. 36 m 120 ft) from which there are beautiful‘views of the old town and the northern districts of the city. From the viewing platform an iron gangway leads to Mosebacketorget.
The Old Town Hall (17th c.), on the S side of Sodermalmstorg, now houses the Municipal Museum (Stadsmuseet). Travel to Scandinavia in october To the S, in Medborgarplatsen, is the Med-borgarhus (Community House, 1939), used for a variety of purposes. In Horns-gatan stands St Mary’s Church (Maria-kyrka), a 16th17th c. building (steeple added in 1825). AlittleWthetree-shaded Adolf Frederikstorg has a fountain sculpture by Wissler, Thor with the Midgard Snake.
DJURGARDEN. On an island, reached from Strandvagen over the Djurgardsbro, isDjurgfirden, a park laid out on the site of an earlier deer-park. This was a royal hunting preserve from the 16th to the 18thc. At the far end of the bridge, on the right, is the Nordic Museum (Nordiska Museet), illustrating the life of Sweden over the centuries. The Royal Armoury on the ground floor displays the way of life of the privileged classes; there are other sections devoted to peasant life, arranged according to the various Swedish provinces, and to the culture of the Lapps. To the S of the Nordic Museum, in a wooden building styled after the Norwegian stave churches, is the Biological Museum (birds and mammals of Scandinavia). A short distance away is Liljevalchs Konsthall, an art gallery which from time to time mounts special exhibitions.
AttheWend ofthe island (alsoaccessible from the city by boat) is the11 Wasa Museum (Vasavarvet), which houses the Wasa, the royal flagship which sank on its maiden voyage in 1628 and was brought to the surface in 1961.
The Wasa was located on the seabed in 1956, lying at a depth of 32 m (105 ft), and the process of recovering and preserving it began three years later.
