iSpritmuseum · Djurgården
True Crime
Sweden's prohibition era in 1920s-30s Stockholm, told through smugglers, bootleggers and moonshiners.
In 1920s Stockholm, the smuggler Karl Georg Malmberg fitted a fog machine to his boat to lose the customs men behind his own smokescreen. He is one of the real criminals here, next to a horse trader who sold liquor from a flask on his back.
The subject is the strictest alcohol control Sweden ever had: not full prohibition, but enough to push thousands of litres of 96% export spirit through the archipelago every night. You walk it as a set, through dark quaysides, a shady doctor's clinic, a seedy restaurant and an illegal nightclub. Anyone who has missed Systembolaget's Saturday closing has felt a small version of the problem.
Director Christer Mellstrand calls it "very visual, fun and somewhat comedic", over a grim story. It is included in the museum ticket, with a free 10 to 15 minute English intro tour hourly from 11:30 to 19:30. The Dry Run, a 45 to 60 minute clue game, is sold at the entrance. Open until 22:00 daily.
Look for
Malmberg's fog machine
The big-time smuggler Karl Georg Malmberg rigged a fog machine on his boat to hide from customs behind a smokescreen.
The flask on his back
Horse trader Ivar Severin Jansson sold bootleg spirits on the street from a flask he carried on his body.
Storkevan's exploding still
Look for the moonshiner known as Storkevan, whose home distillery blew up in the middle of Gamla stan.
The hidden compartment
A secret smuggler's compartment built into the set, where guided-tour groups refill their 1920s-style light grog.
Good for
- Evening Visits
- Locals Who've Seen It All
- Rainy Days
Skip if
You want sober, object-heavy history: this is built as illustrated sets and played partly for laughs.
Also at Spritmuseum
On now nearby
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Image credits
9
- True CrimeCourtesy of Spritmuseum
- James Cameron – Challenging the DeepLovisa Brämming/The Vasa Museum/SMMTF, CC BY
- Ylva Snöfrid: The House of the MusesCourtesy of Liljevalchs konsthall
- MUCHA – Beyond Art NouveauCourtesy of Artipelag
- SpritmuseumHolger.Ellgaard / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
- The Viking MuseumSinikka Halme / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Vasa Museum (Vasamuseet)Holger.Ellgaard / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Liljevalchs konsthallHolger Ellgaard / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Nordiska museetBengt Nyman / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0