County museums in Sweden can be particularly dull, but this one intrigues with its setting in an old mill along the harbor. Inside, the obvious highlights are relics from the royal flagship Kronan, which sank in the Baltic Sea off the island of Öland during a battle against the Danes and the Dutch in 1676. Only 42 of the 840 men aboard survived. The museum was responsible for excavation at the wreck site. Objects found by the marine archaeologists -- glass bottles, tin plates, nautical instruments, a seaman's chest, and many old coins -- are on display. In another exhibit, the museum re-creates the world of Jenny Nyström (1854-1946), a native of Kalmar who went to Paris and became a prominent painter. Her artistic mind was filled with elves and pixies, and her enchantment touched the Swedish heart. Even today, many of her traditional motifs appear on Christmas cards. Models, reproductions, and original paintings evoke her world and art. Outside the exhibits is a cafe.
