Verla has completed the nearly two-year restoration project of the old main building, Patruunan Pytinki, and the building has been opened to the public. Visitors to Patruunan Pytinki, Verla mill owner’s residence, can now also admire selected works of art from the UPM-Kymmene Cultural Foundation.  

Verla is the only World Heritage Site related to the wood processing industry. It is also one of the few World Heritage Sites in the world maintained by a private company. Verla tells its own story of UPM's journey from a forest industry company located along waterways to a global material solutions company. 

A stately atmosphere for visitors to this World Heritage Site 

Designed by architect Eduard Dippell, Patruunan Pytinki was completed in 1885 as the residence of Verla's mill manager, Gottlieb Kreidl. He was one of the Verla mill shareholders and is considered Verla's “true” patron. After him, Pytinki was home to the salaried managers of the Verla factory. 

Patruunan Pytinki has now been restored with respect for the building's history and cultural heritage. At the same time, the building has been converted into a versatile restaurant, conference and banquet facility. The former office of the Verla groundwood and board mill, located at the end of Pytinki, will continue to serve as the reception area for the mill museum and World Heritage Site.

“On a tour of the Verla mill, you can sense the everyday history of work in the past. In contrast, Patruunan Pytinki offers a glimpse of the stately atmosphere of the late 19th century,” says Ville Majuri, director of the Verla Mill Museum. 

Works from the UPM-Kymmene Cultural Foundation on display 

Patruunan Pytinki also offers visitors the opportunity to admire selected works from the art collection of the UPM-Kymmene Cultural Foundation. The collection includes works of both artistic and national importance, accumulated over more than a century by UPM-Kymmene’s predecessor companies – such as Kymi, United Paper Mills, Rauma-Repola, Schauman, Kajaani, and Kaukas. 

The mill museum is open from the beginning of May to the end of September. In addition to the old machines and board manufacturing secrets of the mill buildings, the visit is complemented by exhibitions, crafts shop, and a new restaurant. You can also see prehistoric rock paintings and take a short forest hike in the area.