Hovedøya Geocoin (Antique Gold)

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This coin was created for the Klosterruinene på Hovedøya event in Norway, May 4^th 2014.
There were 50 Antique Gold coins minted.

Hovedøya or Hovedøen is one of several small islands off the coast of Oslo, Norway in the Oslofjord. The island is quite small, no more than 800 metres across in any direction, the total area is 0,4 square kilometre. It is well known for its lush and green nature, with a wide variety of trees, bushes and flowers.

The Cistercian monastery, Hovedøya Abbey, was built on the island, and opened on 18 May 1147. During the Medieval period, the monastery was a leading economical force in the Oslo region. It was however closed down before the Reformation after the abbot came into conflict with King Christian II. The military official at Akershus Fortress had the abbot imprisoned and the monastery looted and burned down in 1532. Parts of the ruins of the monastery remain on the island, but much of the stonework was used in the expansion of Akerhus Fortress in the 17th century.

The island has also been used for military installations, and former military buildings and artillery remain on the island. When Denmark-Norway became involved in the Napoleonic war, two cannon batteries were built to defend Oslo and Akershus Fortress in 1808 (again using the monastery ruins as a quarry). Four depots for gunpowder were built in 1826 on the high points of the island to ward off intruders, and a fifth was built in 1867. On the eastern half of the island is a Victorian house, popularly known as the "Laboratory". It was used by Director of Armory Ole Herman Johannes Krag, co-inventor of the Krag-Jørgensen rifle in the late 19th century.

There was once a large German camp on the island, with several barracks, which would later be turned into National Internment Camp for Women in Hovedøya. Today, only a single barracks from the camp remains, located near the ruins of the monastery.

Today the island is a popular destination for tourists and bathers, who can enjoy the island's natural beauty, scenic pastures, historic buildings as well as fairly benign (for Norway) bathing temperatures.