A watercolour of the icebreaker Mjølner
In 1886, Martin Kristian Wilhelm Larsen painted this watercolour of the icebreaker Mjølner. It has just opened a channel in the frozen Oslofjord for the steamships we see in the background. On the left, a young man waves his cap. The sledge, the little hole in the ice and the little jigging rod tell us that he is there to fish. Take a closer look at the picture. What does it tell us about the artist’s view of the icebreaker?
Shipping and manual icebreaking
Until the mid 19th century, shipping to Oslo (Kristiania) took place predominantly in summer. However, from 1848 the port authorities set aside funds in the budget for icebreaking, which at the time was carried out manually. This opened up new opportunities for trade.
Trade before people?
The process of breaking the ice involved lots of manual labour. There were many different tasks. For instance, some chopped grooves in the ice with huge tools, and others pushed the ice up and down in order to break it and create channels. In the absence of modern Health and Safety guidelines, such icebreaking posed a massive risk to human life. How much is a human life worth in comparison with goods transport and trade?
The icebreaker Mjølner
Did icebreaking get too time-consuming? Or too risky? In any case, from 1867 the port authorities also engaged steamships and tugs to keep the channels open. But it was only when they invested in the icebreaker Mjølner in 1878 that shipping to Oslo (Kristiania) became reliable all year round.
Chosen by Ibrahim Abdirashid, History student
Artefact no. JWC.112, on loan from Oslo Museum