I traveled from the UK to Norway for the primary time to go to my great-grandfather's grave. I discovered that after 20 years gravestones are eliminated, so we had to search around for him.

• I traveled from the UK to Norway earlier this 12 months to go to the grave of my great-grandfather. 
• Upon my arrival, I found that his headstone had been eliminated in 2007 as a result of harm.
• However I used to be nonetheless in a position to pay my respects, because of the kindness of strangers.

Within the final 12 months of my grandfather’s life, the one factor he wished to speak about was Norway. 

My grandpa, Stewart, was born and raised in Glasgow, Scotland, to a Scottish mom and a Norwegian father. His father, Einar Marthinsen, lived in Glasgow for a few years however returned to Norway after he and my grandpa’s mom separated. He died there in 1987, 9 years earlier than I used to be born. 

Though I by no means obtained to fulfill Einar, I at all times felt an affection for my Scandinavian heritage. My grandpa had raved about Norway, as he hung out visiting his father there as a young person. However regardless of this, I solely visited for the primary time after he died in October 2022.

My aunt, Penny, accompanied me on the journey in March 2023, and we deliberate every little thing in beautiful element. We spent 4 days in Oslo, Tønsberg, and Hvasser, a village and island off the coast of Norway the place my great-grandfather was buried. We had been wanting to pay our respects at his grave, and we knew the graveyard’s location since my grandmother had stored a newspaper clipping with particulars about his funeral and burial service at Hvasser Kirke.

However after we arrived, his headstone was gone. 

A band of strangers helped us discover solutions

My aunt and I had been traipsing by means of the graveyard within the pouring rain for the most effective a part of an hour after we encountered Max, an aged man who helped with our search after we defined that we had traveled from the UK. 

The graveyard was tiny, and there could not have been greater than 100 graves. Marthinsen is a typical final title in Norway, so the title popped up so much — however there was no Einar Marthinsen.

After the three of us checked every headstone for the third time, I started to lose hope. Had we been given the improper info? My aunt had additionally by no means visited Norway earlier than, so she was simply as confused as I used to be.

Max took us to a close-by cafe and requested us to attend whereas he contacted the church’s workplace to ask what had occurred to the headstone. We had been touched by his kindness, as neither of us spoke Norwegian. 

As we waited for a church official to name again, Max launched us to most of the locals within the cafe. He appeared to know each one that wandered by means of the door, from a middle-aged girl who had just lately misplaced her husband to a father and son who had lived within the space for a few years. 

We advised every of them our story. Lots of them had been sympathetic and supplied recommendation, whereas a good friend of Max’s who knew the native priest tried to get in contact on our behalf. 

Most gravestones in Norway are eliminated after 20 years

After about an hour, a church official known as again to tell us that my great-grandfather’s headstone had been eliminated in 2007 because it had been broken and no kinfolk had supplied to pay for its maintenance. 

Whereas scripting this story, I reached out to the Norwegian Ministry of Youngsters and Households, and a spokesperson confirmed that gravestones in Norway are freed from cost and are protected for 20 years. After that point, households of the deceased are normally requested to pay for the headstone, which prices round 180 Norwegian krone, or round $16 per 12 months. 

If the household would not pay, the headstone is normally eliminated, apart from some gravestones that characterize a particular historical past or “have an area distinctive character or are distinctive,” a spokesperson advised me. 

This info stunned me, particularly as many gravestones within the UK are a whole bunch of years previous and gravestones are usually bought privately by the household of the deceased.

Nonetheless, after performing some analysis, I found that headstone removing occurs within the UK too. In line with the Scottish Borders Council, the proprietor of a broken headstone is normally given 14 days’ discover to have it repaired or eliminated, and if they do not the council will probably be entitled to do that for them and the proper to make use of the land will probably be withheld till the price of the removing or restore is paid.

We had been saddened by the information, particularly as we had been unaware that such legal guidelines existed. So far as we had been conscious, none of Einar’s household in Scotland had been contacted in regards to the headstone, and my aunt and I had unsuccessfully tried to trace down potential residing kinfolk in Norway to seek out out what they knew. 

Besides, the story has a considerably completely satisfied ending.

The church official despatched throughout a photograph of the headstone that was taken earlier than it was eliminated, they usually additionally despatched the names on the gravestones subsequent to the place Einar was buried so we might discover him. My aunt and I returned to the graveyard with Max, and we had been lastly in a position to pay our respects. 

For a second it felt just like the worst had occurred, however we left the graveyard that day feeling elated. We had achieved what we had got down to do, which by no means would have been doable with out the kindness of strangers.