Seili/Själö, the lepers' island, 18 July 2018

Leprosy, Hansen disease (named after the Norwegian who discovered the mycobacteria) was endemic in scandinavian countries in the middle ages. Seili island was established in 1619 as a place where to "banish" lepers. At this time, the Finland that we know was part of the Swedish kingdom. Many such lepers colony were established all over Sweden. More than 600 lepers have been buried in Seili, and the last one died in 1785. Among the reasons to select Sail as the lepers island was that it is part of a sandy ridge suitable for burial!

The former hospital, now hosting a research centre from the Turku university

On the Island, around 60 patients were treated at any given time. Twenty to thirty percent of the patients were dying every year.

Following the decline in leprosy, the hospital was transformed in a mental hospital in the XVIII century, for chronically ill female patients. The picture below shows the state of the hospital at the time it was taken over by the Turku university.

The hospital staff and the priest were accommodated on the main island while all facilities used by the lepers were located on a nearby islet connected by a bridge. At the end of the XVII century, the islet and the main island merged because of the uplift of land in the area.

The original church was erected in 1619, but was destroyed by the Russians. It was reconstructed in 1733 and 1734. This is the church that one can see on the island.

The Seili church, established in 1619.

The church is made of wood. The separation at the back of the church was delimiting the area reserved for lepers. They had their own altar and therefore no contacts with other residents of the island.

The votive brig ship is the "Agent", built by Åke Sandvall, a famous model boat builder in Finland. The Agent was a merchant ship from Nauvo in the XIX century. Interesting to note that the ship is not considered as a votive ship in the Scandinavian protestant churches but rather memorial or decoration. The ship presents a Russian flag as Finland was part of Russia as the Grand Duchy of Finland in the XIX century.

Nice timber assembly!

Belisama mooring in the bay of Seili

 From Seili, we moved to Nauvo/Nagu marina in order to get grocery, water and electricity. This was a smart move as its started to rain after two weeks of canicule.

The church of Nauvo presents another votive ship created by Åke Sandvall.

The maritime house of Nagu has an interesting collection of model boats and marine paintings. It covers a wide range of period.