Bollhustäppan is a small public space

Public space

A public space is a social space such as a town square that is open and accessible to all, regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, age or socio-economic level. One of the earliest examples of public spaces are commons. For example, no fees or paid tickets are required for entry, nor are the entrants...

 in Gamla stan

Gamla stan

Gamla stan , until 1980 officially Staden mellan broarna , is the old town of Stockholm, Sweden. Gamla stan consists primarily of the island Stadsholmen. The surrounding islets Riddarholmen, Helgeandsholmen, and Strömsborg are officially part of, but not colloquially included in, Gamla stan...

 Is the old town in central Stockholm

Stockholm

Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...

, Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

. Named after Bollhuset

Bollhuset

Bollhuset, also called ', ', and ' at various times, was the name of the first theater in Stockholm, Sweden; it was the first Swedish theater and the first real theater building in the whole of Scandinavia. The name "" means "The Ball House", and it was built in 1627 for ball sports and used in...

, a historical theatre, it is located south of Slottsbacken

Slottsbacken

Slottsbacken is a street in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden.It stretches east from the Stockholm Cathedral and the Royal Palace down to the street Skeppsbron which passes along the eastern waterfront of the old town...

 just behind the Finnish Church, while two gates connects it to Trädgårdsgatan

Trädgårdsgatan

Trädgårdsgatan is a small street in Gamla stan, the old town of Stockholm, Sweden. It stretches west from Skeppar Olofs Gränd to Källargränd, just south of the Royal Palace and north of the square Stortorget. Forming a parallel to Slottsbacken and Köpmangatan, it is intercepted by Trädgårdstvärgränd...

.

History

In spite of its location in the Medieval part of the city, the history of Bollhustäppan is remarkably short, as the site was occupied by a building until the 1960s. It is named after the proximity to the two ball game

Ball game

In American English, ball game refers specifically to either a game of basketball, baseball or American football. In British English ball game refers to any sport played with a ball....

 buildings constructed in 1627-1792 and 1648-53, the bigger of the two used as a theatre from 1667, the smaller transformed into the Finnish Church in 1725 and still existent.
On the lot itself were in medieval times the charitable institutions Fredagsalmosan and Söndagsalmosan ("The Friday Alms" and "The Sunday Alms"). These institutions resided in a building donated to them in 1491 and located on the western fourth of the patch. East of this building was an estate owned by influential men such as councillors and chamberlains of the Helsing and von Snoilsky dynasties. An electrical plant was constructed on the lot in the 1880s, the steam-engine of which to start with supplied the Royal Palace

Stockholm Palace

The Stockholm Palace is the official residence and major royal palace of the Swedish monarch. . Stockholm Palace is located on Stadsholmen , in Gamla Stan in the capital, Stockholm...

 exclusively, but by 1888 was enlarged in order to provide electricity to the entire old town. On the eastern half of the patch was a building during the Middle Ages at least three storeys tall, and during the 17th century named Hedersköldska huset after the proprietor and trader Anders Hedersköld. Parts of 15th century basement were still present following the demolition in the 1960s until its demolition in 1973. In autumn 2002 the space was restored, with new lightnings and benches added and some stairs removed for accessibility.

Boy looking at the Moon

Located on Bollhustäppan is, arguably, the smallest public sculpture in Sweden, named Pojke som tittar på månen ("Boy Looking at the Moon") or Järnpojken ("Iron Boy") but colloquially called "Olle". It is sculpted by Liss Eriksson

Liss Eriksson

Liss Eriksson was a Swedish sculptor.- Life :The son of the sculptor Christian Eriksson , Liss Eriksson grew up on Maria Prästgårdsgatan on Södermalm in southern-central Stockholm...

 (1919-2000) in 1954 and was inaugurated in 1967. It retells the memory from the artist's childhood of when he during sleepless night used to sit on his bed to stare at the moon through his window. Made of sandstone

Sandstone

Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...

 and wrought iron

Wrought iron

thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...

, its stylized form contrasts the warmth of its expression; its informal and restrained manners making it one of the most appreciated pieces of art in the city, fondled by crowds of tourists every year, as the shiny head shows, and given coins and goodies, while Stockholmers occasionally knits neckerchiefs and caps for the boy to wear during winters. According to the artist, the smallness of the sculpture enlarges the empty space around it, and, as this empty space is part of the sculpture, it is actually a rather large piece of art. Martin Stugart, an expert on the history of Stockholm, writes the coins tourists give to the sculpture, in spite of the advices given by the guides, are collected by the Finnish Church which attempts to restrain the phenomenon. According to the low-key cult surrounding the boy, however, stealing these coins means bad luck as the child sees everything but forgets nothing.

External links

• gamla-stan-stockholm.se - Gallery of public art in Gamla stan, including an image of Pokje som tittar på månen.