Pyramiden

Pyramiden is a deserted town found in a cluster of Islands called the Svalbard. The towns on islands were founded by the Swedish in 1910 but were sold to the former Soviet Union (now Russia) in 1927.

The Soviet Union called Pyramiden, Pyramida (Пирамида) and created a coal mining settlement on the island. At its height the coal mining settlement had over one thousand inhabitants making it a thriving community build on the mining work in the area.

The town was vibrant up until 1998 when the town became deserted after the Russian state run company Arctikugol Trust closed the mines on January 10th 1998. when this happened the people of Pyramiden vacated the area in a hurry leaving everything as it was, including alot of belongings and tools.

Pyramiden is now a tourist destination catering to the English, Russian and Norwegian languages. Although there is no restriction on visiting Pyramiden no one is allowed in the buildings due to health and safety reasons.


Images attributed to Eckhard Pecher.