The National Museum of Finland Bear - Helsinki, Finland
N 60° 10.491 E 024° 55.930
35V E 385282 N 6672680
This bear sits at the entrance to the National Museum of Finland on Mannerheimintie in Helsinki Finland.
Waymark Code: WMG6J3
Location: Finland
Date Posted: 01/20/2013
Views: 45
This bear, carved out of stone, is seated at the entrance to the National Museum of Finland at Mannerheimintie 34. The bear is on a pillar, above you, as you ascend the stairs to the museum entrance.
The National Museum, in Helsinki, illustrates the 10,000 year Finnish history from prehistoric times to the present, including major archaeological finds. Both permanent and temporary exhibitions embark on a time-trip through the history of Finland.
"In Finland a bear is thought to be an intelligent and soulful creature. It is no ordinary animal but some sort of human being living in a forest. It can count at least to nine and it can understand the language of man. Even though a bear has the strength of nine men it will not attack a human being without a good reason.
In Finnish tradition women had a special relationship with bears. It was imagined that bears were looking for a chance to reincarnate through women. Because of this belief women were supposed to stay far away from a dead bear during a bear's funeral feast. It was commonly believed that bears would not attack a person they recognised as a female." (
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