Ludwig Wittgenstein’s house in Norway, once known to the locals as “Østerrike” (Norwegian for “Austria”), now stands once more on its original site. Thanks to the efforts of the local Wittgenstein Foundation (Stiftinga Wittgenstein i Skjolden), the building—dismantled in 1958—was reconstructed and re-erected in its original location. Since its reopening in 2019, the house has grown steadily in popularity, drawing an increasing number of visitors each year. In 2022, we too had the privilege of visiting Skjolden and viewing the house. We were kindly invited to share our impressions with the Stiftinga Wittgenstein.

Wittgenstein designed the house himself following his first stay in Skjolden in 1913, and it was completed as early as 1914. However, due to his service in the First World War, he was only able to make full use of it several years later.

Throughout his life, Wittgenstein sought out places of retreat that would allow him to concentrate undisturbed on his philosophical work. What he valued most about Norway was its “quiet seriousness,” as he noted in a letter from 1936:

I can’t imagine that I could have worked anywhere as I do here. It’s the quiet &, perhaps, the wonderful scenery; I mean, its quiet seriousness.

Ludwig Wittgenstein, letter to G. E. Moore, October 1936

External link: https://stiftinga-wittgenstein.no/2022/09/26/martin-kom-heilt-fra-austerrike-for-a-ro-over-til-osterrike-i-skjolden/

Sources:

Ludwig Wittgenstein: Gesamtbriefwechsel/Complete Correspondence (2nd Release). Innsbrucker Electronic Edition 2013. InteLex.

Stiftinga Wittgenstein: https://stiftinga-wittgenstein.no/category/tidslinje