Europa Nostra

About Europa Nostra

Europa Nostra, meaning “Our Europe” in Latin, is a pan-European heritage organisation that brings together more than 240 member organisations and 120 governmental bodies, local authorities and associated organisations.

Since 1978, the Europa Nostra Awards have recognised exemplary achievements in four categories:

• Conservation

• Research

• Dedicated Service

• Education, Training and Awareness-Raising

Hjo received its award in the Conservation category.

The Europa Nostra distinction is best viewed as recognition of the property owners, builders, craftspeople and residents who, through practical work and dedication, have helped preserve Hjo’s unique wooden town environment.

Europa Nostra’s logo contains seven symbols representing Europe’s natural and cultural heritage:

• A mountain

• A river

• A tree

• A cathedral

• A church

• A castle

• A row of houses

Hjo – an area of national interest for cultural heritage

An Area of National Interest is a place, landscape or site that is protected because of its significance to Sweden as a whole. Cultural heritage environments can be designated as Areas of National Interest.

Of the more than 1,500 sites in Sweden recognised for their cultural heritage value, Hjo is one of them.

Hjo’s unique character is shaped by its irregular medieval street pattern, small-scale wooden buildings, historic town properties and traditional cottages at the town entrances.

The medieval town centre can still be experienced today in the neighbourhoods surrounding Stora Torget (the Market Square), extending towards the River Hjo to the north and west, and southwards towards Sjögatan and the beginning of Strandpromenaden.

North of the river lies New Town, developed during the latter half of the 19th century. This area reflects the urban planning ideals of the time, with broad straight streets, tree-lined blocks, parks and open spaces designed to provide movement, beauty, light and fresh air while reducing the risk of devastating urban fires.

The Town Park, with its grand wooden villas built for the spa resort era, forms another important chapter in Hjo’s history. Together, these different environments can still be read today like annual rings in the town’s development.

MAP OF HJO'S CULTURAL HERITAGE

Other Areas of National Interest for cultural heritage within Hjo Municipality include Grevbäck, Norra Fågelås and Södra Fågelås.

The medieval town

The medieval town contained Hjo’s most prestigious neighbourhoods until the second half of the 19th century.

Here stood the town hall, workshops, merchants’ houses and craftsmen’s properties, alongside residential buildings that were often two storeys high.

Behind the main buildings were outbuildings, barns and stables, while covered carriage passages allowed goods to be transported directly from the street into the courtyards.

The further away from the market square you travelled, the smaller and simpler the houses became. On the outskirts lived labourers and fishermen.

Today, many of the beautiful gateways around the square can still be admired along Hamngatan and Långgatan. Behind them, numerous historic outbuildings and stables remain, some of which have been carefully converted into charming homes.

The Three Wooden Towns and their Europa Nostra awards

During the 17th and 18th centuries, fire was the greatest threat to Sweden’s towns and cities. Hjo was largely spared, apart from the major fire of 1794.

The next major threat came during the 1960s and 1970s, when more than 40 per cent of Sweden’s oldest urban housing stock was demolished.

To strengthen cooperation in preserving authentic wooden town architecture, the towns of Eksjö, Hjo and Nora formed the Three Wooden Towns Network in 1997.

The network works to engage both residents and visitors through exhibitions, books, lectures and guided tours that share the history and significance of Sweden’s wooden towns.

More than two decades later, interest in wooden town heritage continues to grow.

Different, yet remarkably similar

Each of the three towns has its own distinct character and historical identity.

• Eksjö is the military town of the Småland Highlands.

• Hjo is the spa town on the shores of Lake Vättern.

• Nora is the iron and mining town of Bergslagen.

What unites them is a long tradition of caring for their wooden buildings and the fact that all three have been recognised by Europa Nostra.

Nora has received two Europa Nostra awards. The first, awarded in 1993, recognised the successful completion of a complex long-term project preserving the town’s historic and cultural environment, including its wooden buildings, industrial heritage and railway to Pershyttan. The second award followed in 2002 for the town’s new parish centre.

Eksjö received its award in 1997 for the outstanding restoration of an important collection of historic wooden buildings that brought new life to the old town centre.

Hjo and Europa Nostra

Hjo was the first of the Three Wooden Towns to receive Europa Nostra’s Medal of Honour in 1990.

The jury’s citation stated:

“For the remarkable preservation of the collective wooden town of Hjo, maintaining its distinctive character and charm.”

In Stora Torget, the town’s main square, you can find a memorial dedicated to the Europa Nostra Medal.

The sculpture was created by Nils-Erik Mattsson and consists of two limestone blocks leaning against one another, placed on a seven-sided base featuring Europa Nostra’s seven symbols.

Learn more about the Three Wooden Towns

For more information about the Three Wooden Towns network, visit:

www.tretrastader.se