Welcome to a city walk in Henrik Ibsen's footsteps in Skien city center, March 22nd at 1 p.m. We start at the Ibsen bust located at the bottom of Ibsentrappen at Snipetorpgata.
Henrik Ibsen was born in Stockmannsgården in Skien on March 20, 1828. It was early spring and from the windows of the apartment the family could see straight on the church that was located in the middle of the town's lively square.
Henrik was two years old when the family took over the trading house from his grandfather and moved into the stately Altenburggården. Henrik's grandfather had made a lot of money from, among other things, grain imports and the production of spirits.
Henrik's father, Knut Ibsen, invested and expanded production at the distillery. But the investments became a loss when the state increased alcohol taxes, and in December 1834, creditors who had mortgages on the Ibsen family's businesses began demanding the forced sale of the properties.
In 1835, Henrik Ibsen's childhood home was sold, and the family moved to the country estate at Venstøp to live there year-round. NB: The walk only takes place in the center of Skien, not at Venstøp.
