Year in Review 2025
9. January 2026
The Museum of Icelandic Sorcery & Witchcraft – Year in Review 2025
The year 2025 was both eventful and rewarding for the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery & Witchcraft. Nearly 16,000 visitors came to the museum, and despite a quieter start to the year, activity remained strong throughout.
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In April, we completed the redesign of the exhibition section dedicated to the ritual stone from Goðdalur — the only preserved artefact in Iceland directly connected to pre-Christian pagan worship.
Throughout the year, the museum took part in numerous events and festivals, including the second Galdrafár arts and culture festival in Hólmavík, and celebrated its 25th anniversary with a diverse programme for locals of all ages. Children’s culture played a key role, through collaborations with the Púkinn children’s culture festival and the University of Iceland’s folklore department, as well as a range of creative workshops for young participants.
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The museum also participated in two European cooperation projects, MERSE and NICHE2, focusing on social innovation and intangible cultural heritage. International recognition followed, including a feature in The Daily Mail, as well as a visit from the production team of History Hit.
The year concluded with popular workshops, book launches, and cultural events that were warmly received by the local community.
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We are deeply grateful to everyone who supported us throughout the year and look forward to new projects, fresh challenges, and continued storytelling and magic on the Strandir coast in the new year.
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Það var okkur sérstök ánægja þegar breski fjölmiðillinn the Daily Mail setti Galdrasýningu á Ströndum í fjórða sæti á lista yfir furðulegustu söfn Evrópu. Við tökum því sem viðurkenningu og þökkum öllum sem hafa hjálpað til við að halda galdraglæðunum lifandi.
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The Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft Named One of Europe’s Quirkiest Museums
14. október 2025
We are delighted to share that the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft has been voted 4th among Europe’s 10 quirkiest museums by the Daily Mail!
This recognition is a wonderful honor for our small museum in Hólmavík and a celebration of the rich, mysterious, and sometimes mischievous world of Icelandic folklore, magic, and witchcraft. For more than two decades, our goal has been to preserve and present this fascinating part of Iceland’s cultural heritage — the stories, spells, and sagas that have shaped our imagination and history.
We’d like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all our visitors, supporters, and friends from around the world who have helped keep the spirit of the museum alive. Your curiosity and enthusiasm make it all possible.
We also want to send our warmest congratulations to our fellow Icelandic institution, the Icelandic Phallological Museum,for taking the top spot on the list. It’s a proud day for Icelandic museums — proving that our small island is full of big stories and unique treasures!
NICHE 2 WP2 results are now online: evidence, examples and GreenComp Matrix to accelerate ICH’s green transition
9. október 2025
NICHE 2 NICHE 2 has published the full results of Work Package 2 (WP2), now available in multiple languages on the project platform. From Iceland to Italy, France, Spain and Croatia, WP2 has turned fragmented knowledge into usable guidance for practitioners, educators and policymakers working where Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) meets sustainability. óáþreifanlegs menningararfs (ICH) og sjálfbærni.
What´s new online?
1) Executive Summary
A consolidated mapping and analysis completed by each partner at country level and from an EU-wide perspective that
- Synthesises national findings on ICH’s role, readiness and risks in the green transition, and directly informs the co-design of the upcoming NICHE 2 Training Programme
- Walks readers from situational analysis to actionable insights: sector dynamics; inhibitors and challenges; support systems and best practices; and the skills/competences needed for the transition
- Is intended as a strategic tool for future training, policy and funding, useful beyond the project partnership.
2) Best Practices Collection (12 cases)
A curated portfolio that covers five partner countries and EU-level initiatives, reflecting diverse actors, themes and territorial scales. It showcases a breadth of dimensions relevant to ICH and sustainability, including:
- ICH preservation & transmission
- Green management models for community museums and venues
- Policy frameworks and funding conditionalities
- Smart governance & technological innovation for low-impact tourism
- Training programmes
- Sustainable tourism
- Circular approaches / eco-design
3) The GreenComp Matrix
An operational matrix developed by partners to link the training needs emerging from the mapping with the competences of the European Commission’s GreenComp framework. The matrix is used to derive clear learning outcomes for the forthcoming NICHE 2 training offer and to ensure methodological robustness and traceability from evidence to curriculum.
What happens next
WP2 outputs feed directly into the design of the NICHE 2 Training Programme (WP3), combining technical modules with reflection-based learning and culturally sensitive dialogue so practitioners can safeguard heritage and steward environmental change responsibly.
For more information, visit the NICHE project’s official website at https://www.nicheproject.eu/index.php or contact our team via email at nicheproject.eu@gmail.com. https://www.nicheproject.eu/index.php eða hafðu samband við teymið okkar með tölvupósti á nicheproject.eu@gmail.com
Óáþreifanlegur menningararfur Erasmus+ samstarfsverkefni
12. desember 2024
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