Gamle Aker Gravlund

The oldest part of this cemetery dates from the middle ages. High-ranking soldiers and officers were buried here before 1805, and the eastern part of the churchyard (towards Maridalsveien) was a cemetery for cholera victims. A new cemetery was made in 1941-48, with a memorial grove and a monument on its highest point. Two well-known Norwegians buried here are lay preacher Hans Nielsen Hauge (1771-1824), and astronomer and professor Christopher Hansteen (1784-1824). At Akersbakken 10 and Maridalsveien 26 you can find the remnants of entrances to the oldest known mines in Norway, the Akersberget mines. A legend tells that under Aker Church a dragon used to live in deep grottoes inside the mountain, watching over a silver fortune. The church itself rested on four golden posts, and under the church there was a pond where four golden ducks swam. The origins of the legend are unclear, but it might have been made to scare children and other curious people away from the cave mouths called dragehulene, the dragon caves. It might come from the fact that damp and smoke were released from the mine. The mines are described in Historia Norvegica from 1190. They were later flooded with water and given up. In 1500 they tried again to start them up, but all attempts failed. Buses 70 or 34 take you there.

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