Stone monuments and burial mounds at Bokn

If you are driving from Stavanger to Haugesund, the trip will take you through the island community of Bokn. When you cross the bridge from the west to east side of Bokn, you can see on both sides of the sound a stone monument and burial mound that date from the early Bronze age. A beautiful gold buckle from the viking age was discovered near the burial mound in 1923.

Asbjørn Kloster Just a stone's throw east of Bokn church stands a stone monument in honour of Asbjørn Kloster, the founder of the modern temperance movement in Norway. Kloster was born in Boknaberg in 1823, was self-taught in English and received this education at a Quaker school in England. He was a central figure in Norwegian Quakerdom in the 1800s. Kloster played an active role both as a preacher and an educator, and towards the end of his life, as a businessman and ship owner. The stone was erected in 1923 - exactly 100 years after his birth.

Stone monuments at Alvestad When the ferry sails through the Boknasund strait, it follows what has been the coastal road since time immemorial. The prehistoric site along the strait is proof that Bokn was a busy and important location along the coast. When Bishop Neumann in 1838 embarked on a visit to Bokn, he reported on two burial sites on East Bokn, and 43 mounds or stone circles on the opposite side, in Alvestad, Sæbø and Boknaberg. Large grave mounds are found along the strait, the largest being "Resegreftene" which is located in Alvestad.

Røydehamn  In Røydehamn one can see a collection of foundation walls, marking the sites of boat houses and other small buildings, which were probably used as accommodation in connection with winter herring fishing. They were probably used right from the age of migration up until the High Middle Ages. There are ten such sites in this area and one boat slip. In the entire area from Are to Loden, about 160 sites are listed.