Mårbacka Memorial Estate

Selma Lagerlöf, one of the most famous authors in the world, was born and raised at Mårbacka. Even as a young girl, she had already decided to become a writer. Visit Selma Lagerlöf’s home and get an exciting guided tour or have lunch at the restaurant.

Café and guided tours at Mårbacka

Not only is Mårbacka the farm where Selma Lagerlöf was born and raised, but there is also a café and opportunities to get a guided tour with exciting stories from another time. 

Mårbacka was built in 1793 and was remodelled in 1921-1923. In 1801, the farm became the property of the Lagerlöf family. In 1907, the farm became Selma’s, and she wrote in her will that the farm should be preserved and shown in the condition it was in at the time of her death. 

Find Mårbacka

Mårbacka is located in Östra Ämtervik parish in Sunne municipality in Värmland. It’s just over a mile south of Sunne and is a little over 20 miles to Munkfors as the crow flies. If you are going by car from Sunne, take road 241, which only takes 15 minutes.

Mårbacka memorial garden, Selma’s family home in Sunne

Selma Lagerlöf left Mårbacka when she was 23 years old to study in Stockholm. During that time, her father died and Selma’s brother Johan, who took over the farm, was unable to run the farm. After a bankruptcy, he moved to America and the farm that had been in the family for several generations had to be sold. 

It was Selma who brought the farm back into the family. She did so with money she earned from her books. The following year, the house was remodelled and another year later, in 1909, when Selma received the Nobel Prize, she bought back the land and the forest associated with the property.

Exactly like in 1923

Mårbacka looks the same way today as it has since 1923. The house that stands on the Mårbacka property today was built under the direction of architect Isak Gustaf Clason. Selma lived and worked there until her death on 16 April 1940. In her will, she said that the farm was to be owned and managed by a special foundation and kept in the condition it was in when she died and be open to the public. That was what happened and is still the case today. 

Selma Lagerlöf’s most famous books and the Nobel Prize

Her debut novel Gösta Berling’s Saga 1891, Jerusalem 1901-1902 and The Wonderful Adventures of Nils were great successes and Selma Lagerlöf was the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. Selma was awarded the prize with the Swedish Academy’s citation: “because of the noble ideality, richness of the imagination and the soulfulness of the presentation that characterises her poetry”.

Garden, café and shop

At Mårbacka, there is also a wonderful garden with a kitchen garden, spice garden and fruit garden, a popular café with homemade bread, a shop with books, arts and crafts and souvenirs, and an exhibit, all worth a visit. 

The garden is recreated with old-fashioned plants, fruit trees and crops as they were at the time it was planted. Every year, a new exhibit about Selma Lagerlöf is shown in Mårbacka’s barn, a role model in many ways, including as a businesswoman and politician.

At Mårbacka, there is also a wonderful garden with a kitchen garden, spice garden and fruit garden, a popular café with homemade bread, a shop with books, arts and crafts and souvenirs, and an exhibit, all worth a visit. 

The garden is recreated with old-fashioned plants, fruit trees and crops as they were at the time it was planted. Every year, a new exhibit about Selma Lagerlöf is shown in Mårbacka’s barn, a role model in many ways, including as a businesswoman and politician.

Mårbacka opening hours and guided tours 

Mårbacka is open daily from June until mid-August. During the summer, there are guided tours of the memorial garden. To see the house from the inside, you have to join a guided tour. During certain periods, it may be important to book in advance as it can be fully booked.