Ground will be broken for an 800-square-meter motorcycle museum in Akureyri, north Iceland, on Saturday. The museum will be built in four phases—the first phase is scheduled to finish next year—and once completed, exhibit about 50 motorcycles.
The purpose with the museum is to document the more than 100-year history of motorcycles in Iceland through text, objects and pictures. The oldest motorcycle that will be on display in the museum is a 1928 Triumph, Morgunbladid reports.
The motorcycle belonged to Jón Dan Jóhannsson, the father of the museum’s future curator, Jóhann Freyr Jónsson. “The motorcycle is still in good working condition and is therefore the oldest drivable motorcycle in Iceland,” Jónsson said.
Other historical motorcycles that will be exhibited in the museum include the two first police motorcycles that were used in Akureyri. The objects that will be on display come from all parts of the country and many of them were donated by motorcyclists.
The museum will be built in the memory of Heidar Th. Jóhannsson, Jónsson’s uncle, who died in a motorcycle accident two years ago.
“He was a great character,” Jónsson said. “Heidar had dreamt about building a museum for a long time and had begun collecting motorcycles to have on display.”
Next weekend special “Cycle Days” will be held in Akureyri and on Friday night a concert will be held in local venue Sjallinn to support the museum project. Ground will be broken for the museum at 12 noon on Saturday.
