The Nordiska museet in Stockholm has launched a new collection initiative to study how Swedes sleep and what they dream about. According to museum intendent Anna Fredholm, the project aims to give sleep its rightful place in cultural history. "We sleep one-third of our lives, it's time to give that part a place in cultural history," Fredholm stated.
The museum is collecting information about nighttime routines, including whether people sleep with headphones in or drink specific types of tea before bed. The initiative also provides historical context, noting that in early 1900s Stockholm, a typical family might have consisted of two adults and five children sleeping in cramped conditions with a sofa serving as a bed and mattresses in the kitchen. The museum's goal is to map contemporary sleeping habits while preserving this aspect of daily life for future cultural understanding.
We sleep one-third of our lives, it's time to give that part a place in cultural history.