Suddenly I find myself in an area easily mistaken for a neighbourhood in any city but Stockholm. Brown and rustic brick houses. Stairs, arches and copper details. An almost medieval feeling. Is this England? No, this is part four of Hidden Streets of Stockholm: Lärkstaden.
Series: Hidden Streets in Stockholm. Area: Östermalm.
To See
Hidden Streets
Architecture
Historic buildings
Get Here
Metro f/T-Centralen to Tekniska Högskolan
Walk 20 min f/ Sergels Torg
Nearby
Engelsbrektskyrkan (church)
Mr. Cake (café)
KTH Royal Institute
of Technology
Lärkstaden
Lärkstaden (Swedish for ”Lark City”) is an urban area within the city district of Östermalm in central Stockholm, Sweden. The name originates from the large block ”Lärkan” which used to dominate the area before the present buildings were built in 1907. Though the area has no official boundaries, it is said to be framed by the streets Odengatan, Karlavägen, Valhallavägen, and Uggelviksgatan.
National Romanticism
Lärkstadens’ brick architecture is largely inspired by England. But also by the national romanticism that dominated Swedish architecture in the early years of the twentieth century. The national romanticism was inspired by castles and defence constructions from when Sweden was a European superpower, in Swedish known as Stormaktstiden.
Engelbrektskyrkan
The church of Engelbrekt is quite noticeable as it protectingly hovers over Lärkstaden. Built on a hill, it was completed in 1914 and is one of the largest churches in Stockholm. It has a nave of 32 meters, making it the highest in Scandinavia.
Other buildings in the same style
Public buildings also built in this type of architecture are for instance Stockholm City Hall, Högalid Church, Stockholm Court House and Stockholm Olympic Stadium.
Materials and appearance
Important in National Romanticism is the use of authentic materials such as wood, forging and stone. Houses are built of dark brick, natural stone or plaster with dark red colours. The windows are mullioned, some have shutters and the balconies are crammed with forging details. The broken saddle roofs with dormer windows are sharply sloped.
It gives a feeling of being abroad when walking the streets of Lärkstaden. England surely comes to mind. The colour palette and the rustic brick houses are unique to this area. From 1920 onward, the architectural style changes to the simpler Art Déco found in most areas of Stockholm. Read about three hidden streets built in Art Déco style here.
The most expensive house in Sweden
A flight of stairs up from Verdandigatan lies the street of Tyrgatan. The townhouse at Tyrgatan 5 is, at the time this is written, for sale. The brick townhouse has 10 rooms distributed on 639 m² and the price tag is a modest 150 000 000 SEK. If sold, it will be the most expensive house sale ever in Sweden.
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