Mittens for my sister or her friend, depending on who beats who in this year’s Birkebeinerrenn.

The lady figure is Inga of Varteig, (ca 1185-1234), the mistress of king Haakon III of Norway and the mother of king Haakon IV of Norway (Haakon Haakonsson). The man figure is a Birkebeiner. “In 1206, the Birkebeiners set off on a dangerous voyage through treacherous mountains and forests, taking the now two-year-old Haakon Haakonsson to safety”. The Birkebeiner ski race commemorates this. There is also a ski race named after Inga, “Ingalåmi”.The Birkebeiner is also the motif of Lillehammer’s coat of arms.