The Spælsau is a breed of sheep from Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. Many consider Spelsau to be the original breed of sheep in Norway, and it is one of the Northern European short-tailed sheep

Northern European short-tailed sheep

Northern European short-tailed sheep are a group of sheep breeds and landraces from the British Isles, Scandinavia, and the area around the Baltic. They are thought to be derived from the first sheep brought to Europe by early farmers...

 breeds. It is well adapted to the climate and was a domestic animal from the Iron Age. The spelsau stock makes up about 20% of the total number of sheep in Norway.

In 1912, to prevent extinction of the breed, two breeding stations were established. Icelandic sheep

Icelandic sheep

The Icelandic sheep is a breed of domestic sheep. The Icelandic breed is one of the Northern European short-tailed sheep, which exhibit a fluke-shaped, naturally short tail. The Icelandic is a mid-sized breed, generally short legged and stocky, with face and legs free of wool...

 were crossed through semen import in the 1960s and 1970s. Finnsheep

Finnsheep

The Finnish Landrace or Finnsheep is a breed of domestic sheep which has a high incidence of multiple births – it is common for a ewe to have three, four, or even five lambs at once. In North America there have been several instances of births of seven lambs, and the record in Finland is nine...

 and Faeroe Island sheep

Faroes (sheep)

The Faroes is a breed of domestic sheep native to the Faroe Islands. One of the Northern European short-tailed sheep, it is a small, very hardy breed. Faroes ewes weigh around at maturity, and rams are . Rams are horned and ewes are usually polled, and the breed occurs naturally in many different...

 were also used in the breeding program. This breed is raised primarily for meat.

Characteristics

Originally it is compact and lightly built and does not need much concentrated food. The meat has relatively little fat. The Spelsau gives rich milk, has a strong flock instinct and manages well outdoors most of the year. But it is vulnerable to eye disease caused by eating the plant Bog Asphodel

Bog Asphodel

Narthecium ossifragum, commonly known as bog-, Lancashire- or bastard asphodel, is a plant of Western Europe, found on wet, boggy moorlands up to about 1000 m. It produces spikes of bright yellow flowers in summer. The bright orange fruits have been used as a colourant to replace saffron by...

(Narthecium ossifragum). Wool colours include black and white but common among older types (Gamalnosk and Villsau) are many variations and shades of grey (known as `blue`) and brown (known as `red`)

Adult ewes reach a live weight of 60 kg (132.3 lb) to 70 kg (154.3 lb).

Uses

It gives milk and meat of good quality. The wool is characterised through having two layers: An outer longhaired, glossy undulating layer of wool protecting the underlying layer against wind and rain, and an underlying layer which keeps the sheep warm.
The long, protective wool which is used for weaving is traditionally spun into two-strand, tightly-spun yarn, instead of the usual three-strand type, resulting in a beautiful lustre. This spelsau yarn was used in the Norwegian old tapestries from the renaissance and baroque times. The Viking ship sails were made from spelsau yarn. The wool was also in the old days used in clothing because it was light, stable and absorbed little moisture.