See and do
Källskär, the island of the Count

Källskär, the island of the Count

Källskär is an island in the Kökar archipelago that the Swedish baron Göran Åkerhielm, or the Count as the people of Kökar called him, once fell in love with and where he built himself a little paradise in the barren environment, well harmonised with the surroundings.

Göran Åkerhielm lived on Källskär from 1958 to 1983. At first he stayed in a fishing hut on the northern and more sheltered part of the island. He registered as a resident of Kökar in order to buy the island, but the northern part was not for sale. In 1965, however, he had the opportunity to buy the middle part of Källskär. Here he built a log villa designed by the architect Reima Pietilä, and in its surroundings he laid out a Mediterranean-style garden with, among other things, stately stone walls built by hand by local Kökar residents, rhododendron bushes, roses, vines and Greek marble statues. A croquet court was also built in the garden.
Åkerhielm enjoyed welcoming guests and received many visits from famous friends from all over the world, including Tove Jansson and her life partner Tuulikki Pietilä, who stayed in the small gazebo, also known as the punch porch, when they came to visit the island. Tove has also painted a painting for Göran Åkerhielm, which used to hang above the fireplace in his log cabin, but which is now on display at the Åland Art Museum. However, a copy of the painting still hangs in its original place. The guests who came to visit, with the exception of Tove Jansson it is said, had to participate in the daily work on the island. Åkerhielm believed that hard physical labour cleanses the soul, and if you wanted to enjoy dinner in the evening, you had to participate in gardening for three hours. All work on the island had to be done by hand and no machines were allowed.

In the autumn of 1983, Göran Åkerhielm left his beloved Källskär, never to return, and left his part of the island and its facilities to the Province of Åland. One of the cottages in the southern harbour of Källskär is today used as a scholarship residence for artists and cultural workers and is administered by the Åland Cultural Delegation.

During the summer months, there are daily guided tours to Källskär from Brudhäll Hotel & Restaurant in Karlby, Kökar.

As the terrain on Källskär is very hilly, comfortable shoes are recommended.

Address: Hotel Brudhäll (excursion boat start/stop), Karlby, 22730 Kökar

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