II. Main Cultural products 6. Arts and Crafts Section 6.2: Kalevala Arts and Tourists

6.2.1. The Iron Age

In Finland you can find many traces of the Iron Age period. In the classic Finnish epic "The Kalevala", the majority of stories have been collected by singers from Viena in Karelia before the middle of the 1800’s. The epic has been used to form one of the central parts of the traditional Finnish identity. The Kalevala tells stories of old times that ended nearly a thousand years ago, but the stories have remained in the form of songs.

The Kalevala stories are treasures which could be used much more to develop the programmes and arts and crafts of the Finnish tourism, marketing and merchandising. The “Finland product” could stand out and get more prominence of campaigns and brand building by using the characteristics of the Kalevala.

The Kalevala is not only a text that was compiled in the mid-1800s by Elias Lönnrot; the Kalevala also contains many other texts and expressions that have been recorded in the oral traditional heritage of the people, buildings and crafts. The spirit and culture of the Kalevala has been used to promote the idea of Finland’s nationality that distinguishes it from other cultures.

The characteristics of the Kalevala can be compared to the ancient Egyptian legends. Few tourists in Egypt can resist the lure of the ancient mythology. Egyptian history and heritage is abundant and bears culture and tradition appraised by all visitors. Egyptian tourism industry is using this heritage in many forms in promoting the tourism destinations. The images of the traditional stories have been copied in millions in the form of various handicrafts, souvenirs and trinkets. The ancient story is bringing an income to millions of people.

The Finnish Kalevala gives frames, adaptations and fragmentations and it can be modified and interpreted for a variety of purposes. The use of the Kalevala is not exploiting heritage in the same way as the tourism industry is exploiting the Sámi culture. Every Finn has a copyright to the Kalevala. Lönnrot’s version of the Kalevala is just one of a collection. The Kalevala comes from the east, but also western Finland and Savo have embraced the Kalevala and translated it into their own dialect.

“The Jewelry knot theme was known as far back as the Stone Age. Young maidens used to tie their belts with a knot, as it was believed that this would make them fertile. The knot was also believed to have medical power and could heal wounds quickly. The knots are symbolizing belonging together, which also represents the enchantment of love and eternity. An old belief tells that the knots will tie lovers together even when they are far away from each other. The knot has a powerful magic. “

Source: www.kalevalakoru.fi

Stories like those in the Kalevala are Finnish, but, at the same time, they are universal as all the other great world epics. It is all based on the human race, trying to understand its existence and the rest of everything.

Ilmatar (The Female Air Spirit): “There was a lass, an air-girl a nice nature-daughter”, her times grew weary “from being always alone living as a lass in the air’s long yards in the empty wastes” and she stepped further down and launched herself upon the waves to swim. Wind blew her womb full, the sea made her fat. Ilmatar was expecting Väinämöinen. Came a scaup, straightforward bird, it flapped about in search of a nesting-place above the water-mother and saw that Ilmatar who was expecting Väinö had her knee above the sea surface. It built its nest on the kneecap and laid its “sixs golden eggs and an iron egg the seventh”. The hatching of the eggs made Ilmatar´s knee too hot, she jerked her knee and the eggs spread in the dark space and the world was born. Ilmatar organized the new material to be the universe. Väinämöinen, soothsayer, spell caster and singer was born at the age of thirty from Ilmatar.

It is also told that Väinämöinen possessed the wisdom of the ages from birth, for he was in his mother's womb for seven hundred and thirty years, while she was floating in the sea and while the earth was formed. It is after praying to the sun, the moon, and The Great Bear Constellation ( Ursa major) that he was able to escape his mother's womb and dive into the sea.

The Kalevala is about heroes and failures. For example, Kullervo is full of rage and shame, Lemminkäinen is a womanizer, restless and violent. All the themes of the Kalevala are still to be found in everyday life.

Hard-working women, young girls, caring and grieving mothers and the wise women are the Finnish female archetypes.

Love, proposals, marriages, lust, betrayal, longing and rejection are all depicted in the Kalevala, this is how people still feel today.

Deities, such as the forest spirits and livestock and hunting spirits, the water spirits and the fishing spirits explain the order of nature and how humans are a part of the natural world. Finnish people have special relationship with the forests and waterways. When the Finnish hunter asks for good hunting and a good catch, it is not for the kill, but for the hunt. "Tapio threshes in his barn" says the Finnish man about the King of Forest, when the spring gust blows tree seeds on the snow surface. The etymology of the word “kohtalo” = "fate" means in Finnish a share that would belong to each hunter from the catch.

Tar, iron, north, the Sampo, forays, knowledge and hand skills are the national treasures, export trade, competitiveness and market economy.

Travel, winter, starry sky, death explains the mystery of life and death. These subjects interpret the same reality in which people throughout the ages have lived. Lemminkäinen's mother grieving and waiting by the river of Tuonela speaks to mothers of all cultures. The Kalevala tells about drinking and celebrations, suffering and experiences.

"The ancient tradition of the Kalevala, however, lived below the surface of the mainstream culture of spiritual human life. That is to say the real Underground! "says TimoHeikkilä.

Mauri Kunnas drew the Canine Kalevala, which has been published in several languages. The Canine Kalevala is a popular souvenir or gift for foreign tourists. Also you can purchase Kalevala design jewelry produced by modern artists, which are based on beauty of the Iron Age Kalevala. For example, at the Lahti Institute of Design, prehistoric findings provide inspiration for young designers to create new products.

Section 6.2: Kalevala Arts and Tourists

6.2.2. The Sauna and The Souvenirs