Alunda Gutters

Alundagossen has its origins in The Alundavisan, a popular love song in folk song style written by Arvid August Afzelius, one of the foremost collectors of Swedish folk songs in the 19th century. The song is about Alundagossen and Rosa, and about life in the village:

“The boy lives in the town of Alunda - Alo Alunda, Alundalej. His eyes are blue like the clear sky...”

The boy is portrayed as a young farmhand “he walks with his scythe light as a wind” - an image that also lives on in the design of Alundagossen today. At the beginning of the 1990s, the Alunda boy was voted as the symbol of the village in connection with the 700th anniversary of Alunda parish. Today he stands along road 288, with a tie on his shoulder and a flower in his back pocket. (Maybe he is on his way to Rosa)?

Listen to the song here →

Alunda moose

One of Sweden's most unique Viking Age finds was made in Alunda. Four small, finely crafted bronze moose heads were found here - just a few centimetres in size - probably parts of helmets or ceremonial objects. The moose was a powerful symbol in the Viking world, associated with power, protection and the sacred. Similar bronze moose heads have been found in several places along Viking routes, suggesting that the objects had a special significance during the Viking Age.

When you drive into Alunda today, you'll be greeted by a work of art at the roundabout. And no - it's not pickles or anything else. It's actually a replica of the historical find: Alunda's famous Viking moose, which has been brought back home, now as roundabout moose. (The originals are on display at the History Museum).

Read more about the moose here →

Robbers' Cave and Thieves' Cave at Vällen

In the forest area around Lake Vällen the caves The robbers' cave and The thief's cave. The caves are hidden among large moss-covered boulders in a landscape often described as almost John Bauer-like, where the forest is dense, damp and atmospheric.

There are stories of robbers and thieves who are said to have used the caves as hiding places when Lake Vällen was an important transport route for coal and ore. Long before that, the area is believed to have been part of older routes, where waterways linked the inland to the Olandsån river and onwards to the sea.

The Thieves' Cave is the larger and more explored of the two, with both standing-height rooms and narrow crawlways, while the Robbers' Cave is smaller and more hidden. Please note, visits are at your own risk!